The and were
limited express
A limited express is a type of express train service. It refers to an express service that stops at a limited number of stops in comparison to other express services on the same or similar routes.
Japan
The term "limited express" is a common ...
train services in Japan operated by
Japanese National Railways (JNR) and later
East Japan Railway Company
The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...
(JR East) from 1958 until 2002.
History
The ''Hatsukari'' was first introduced on 1 October 1958 as a long-distance steam-hauled limited express service operating between in Tokyo and via the
Jōban Line.
From 1960, new
KiHa 81 series diesel multiple units were introduced on the service,
reducing the journey time to 10 hours 25 minutes. From 1 October 1968, the train was routed via the more direct
Tōhoku Main Line using
583 series
The were limited express electric multiple unit (EMU) train types introduced in 1967 by Japanese National Railways and later operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West) on the through services expr ...
electric multiple units.
From 15 November 1982, with the opening of the
Tōhoku Shinkansen to , the ''Hatsukari'' service was truncated to operate between Morioka and Aomori. This was extended to operate to in
Hokkaido from 13 March 1988, following the opening of the undersea
Seikan Tunnel.
The maximum speed was raised to through the Seikan Tunnel from 16 March 1991.
New
E751 series electric multiple units were introduced from 18 March 2000, with the trains running as Morioka – Aomori ''Super Hatsukari'' alongside the Morioka – Hakodate ''Hatsukari'' services using
485-3000 series EMUs.
The ''Super Hatsukari'' and ''Hatsukari'' services were discontinued from the start of the revised timetable on 1 December 2002, with the opening of the
Tōhoku Shinkansen extension to , and were superseded by new ''
Hakuchō'' and ''Super Hakuchō'' services operating from Hachinohe to Hakodate. The E751 series EMUs were reassigned to new ''
Tsugaru'' limited express services operating between Hachinohe and Hirosaki.
Rolling stock
*
KiHa 81 series DMUs (1960 – 1968)
*
583 series
The were limited express electric multiple unit (EMU) train types introduced in 1967 by Japanese National Railways and later operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West) on the through services expr ...
EMUs (1 October 1968 – December 2002)
*
485 series
The (and the earlier 481 and 483 series variants) is a Japanese limited express electric multiple unit (EMU) type introduced in 1964 by Japanese National Railways (JNR), and subsequently operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East), ...
6-car EMUs (March 1973 – December 2002)
*
485-3000 series 6-car EMUs ( ? – December 2002)
*
E751 series 6-car EMUs (''Super Hatsukari'', March 2000 – December 2002)
File:KiHa 81 Hatsukari Ueno.jpg, JNR KiHa 81 series DMU
File:JNR 583 hatsukari morioka.jpg, JNR 583 series EMU, 1987
File:Hatsukari-Hakutsuru.jpg, 485 series EMU (left), August 1994
File:JR East 485-3000 hatsukari.jpg, 485-3000 series EMU, 2002
See also
*
List of named passenger trains of Japan
This article contains lists of named passenger trains in Japan.
Shinkansen (bullet trains)
Daytime trains Limited express (partial list)
Express
Rapid
Night trains Limited express
Express
Rapid
See also
* Rail transp ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hatsukari (Train)
Named passenger trains of Japan
East Japan Railway Company
Railway services introduced in 1958
Railway services discontinued in 2002