The was a

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 ...

service which connected

Tokyo Station Tokyo Station ( ja, 東京駅, ) is a railway station in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The original station is located in Chiyoda's Marunouchi business district near the Tokyo Imperial Palace, Imperial Palace grounds. The newer Eastern extension is ...

and

Shizuoka Station is a major railway station in Shizuoka, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, operated by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Lines Shizuoka Station is served by the Tōkaidō Shinkansen and Tōkaidō Main Line, and is 180.2 rail km from Tok ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The service was discontinued in March 2007 due to declining passenger numbers.

Stops

Trains stopped at the following stations: – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Rolling stock

* 1955–1957: Locomotive-hauled * 1957–1958: JNR 80 series EMUs * 1958– March 1982: JNR

153 series Year 153 ( CLIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rusticus and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 906 ''Ab urbe condi ...

EMUs * 1968–1996: JNR

165 series The was an express electric multiple unit (EMU) train type introduced in 1963 by Japanese National Railways (JNR). History During the early 1960s, the Chūō Main Line and Shinetsu Line were electrified, requiring new EMUs for the express serv ...

EMUs * 16 March 1996 – 17 March 2007: JR Central

373 series The is an electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) on mid-distance limited express and ''Homeliner'' services in Japan since October 1995. Design The trains were built jointly by Hitachi an ...

EMUs (as ''Wide View Tōkai'') File:クハ１５３－０番台（クハ１５３－７６）.jpg, A 153 series EMU in 1982 File:JNR 165 tokai No1 shizuoka.jpg, 165 series EMU on a ''Tōkai'' express service in 1986

History

The ''Tōkai'' service was first introduced by

Japanese National Railways The abbreviated JNR or , was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987. Network Railways As of June 1, 1949, the date of establishment of JNR, it operated of narrow gauge () railways in all 46 pref ...

(JNR) on 20 July 1955 as a locomotive-hauled semi express train operating between Tokyo and

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most pop ...

. The train was upgraded to "express" status from 5 March 1966. From 16 March 1996, the service was upgraded to become the limited express ''Wide View Tōkai'' using pairs of new 373 series 3-car

EMU The emu () (''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is the second-tallest living bird after its ratite relative the ostrich. It is endemic to Australia where it is the largest native bird and the only extant member of the genus ''Dromaius''. The emu' ...

trainsets, with two return workings daily between Tokyo and Shizuoka.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tokai (train) Named passenger trains of Japan Tōkaidō Main Line Railway services introduced in 1955 Railway services discontinued in 2007