The and were Japanese

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 which operated between and via the undersea

Seikan Tunnel The Seikan Tunnel ( ja, 青函トンネル, or , ), is a dual-gauge railway tunnel in Japan, with a portion under the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait, which separates Aomori Prefecture on the main Japanese island of Honshu from the northern is ...

from December 2002 until March 2016. The services were operated by

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 ar ...

(JR East) and

Hokkaido Railway Company The is one of the constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group), and is often referred to using its official abbreviation of . It operates intercity and local rail services in Hokkaido, Japan. The company introduced Kitaca, a s ...

(JR Hokkaido) respectively.

''Hakuchō''

The ''Hakuchō'' services operated between and using refurbished JR East 485-3000 series six-car EMUs, extended to eight cars during busy seasons. Services operated at a maximum speed of on the ATC-controlled section of the

, with the fastest services between Shin-Aomori and Hakodate taking 2 hours 8 minutes. The ''Hakuchō'' name actually dated back to 1960, as the name of a service which ran from Osaka to Aomori until March 2001. The name was reused for the new services starting in 2002 by popular demand.

''Super Hakuchō''

The ''Super Hakuchō'' services operated between and using JR Hokkaido 789 series six- and eight-car EMUs and a converted 785-300 series 2-car EMU set. As with the ''Hakuchō'' services, these trains operated at a maximum speed of on the ATC-controlled section of the Seikan Tunnel, with the fastest services between Shin-Aomori and Hakodate taking 2 hours 1 minute. File:JRH-789 HE-105.jpg, A JR Hokkaido 789 series EMU on a ''Super Hakuchō'' service in August 2010 File:JRhokkaido Kuha784 303.jpg, A converted 785-300 series EMU on a ''Super Hakuchō'' service in August 2011

History

Semi express

The ''Hakuchō'' service was first introduced from 28 December 1960, as a semi express service operating between and via . JR East 485 kaminuttari livery

Limited express

From 1 October 1961, the train was upgraded to become a limited express service operating between and and via using

KiHa 80 series The KiHa 80 series was a diesel multiple unit type that operated on express services from 1960 to 2002, under Japan National Railways and later under JR Hokkaido and JR Central. Two variants were initially built: the KiHa 81 series to replace t ...

diesel multiple units. From 1965, the Ueno services were separated to become the '' Hakutaka'', and the ''Hakuchō'' was rerouted via Niigata.

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), Wes ...

electric multiple units were used from October 1972. From 1988, the rolling stock was refurbished and repainted in a new livery of cream with light blue and dark blue waistline stripes. ''Hakuchō'' services between Osaka and Aomori ran until 2 March 2001.

Kaikyo Line limited express

From 1 December 2002, the "Hakuchō" name was revived for services between and Hakodate, coinciding with the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen extension from to , replacing the earlier locomotive-hauled ''Kaikyō'' rapid services which operated between Morioka and Hakodate. From the start of the revised timetable on 4 December 2010, with the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen from Hachinohe to , the ''Hakuchō'' and ''Super Hakuchō'' trains were also reorganized to operate from Shin-Aomori to Hakodate via Aomori.

Withdrawal

JR Hokkaido 785series 789series super hakucho at hakodate station

The ''Hakucho'' and ''Super Hakucho'' services were discontinued in March 2016 ahead of the opening of the

Hokkaido Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line that links up with the Tōhoku Shinkansen in northern Aomori Prefecture in Honshu and continues on into the interior of Hokkaido through the undersea Seikan Tunnel. Construction started in May ...

high-speed line. The last services operated on 21 March 2016.

References

External links

JR East 485 series ''Hakuchō''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hakucho East Japan Railway Company Hokkaido Railway Company Named passenger trains of Japan Railway services introduced in 1960 Railway services discontinued in 2016 2016 disestablishments in Japan