TOKYO — East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) has announced a new night train that will run between Tokyo and the Tohoku area (northeast Japan). Services will start in spring 2027.
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JR East will use one of its older limited express trains and make it into a new night train. Inside, all the seats will be special private rooms. There will be rooms for one, two, or four passengers. Around 120 people will be able to use the train at once. The train will also have two rooms for wheelchairs and a place where people can sit together and relax.
The new night train will use blue colors. These colors were also used by famous night trains called “Blue Trains,” which traveled many years ago. But the new train will not have beds. Passengers will sleep by reclining (making flat) their seats.
The company plans the train to leave Tokyo at night and arrive in Tohoku the next morning. During busy times, it may also travel during the daytime. JR East will give more information, such as ticket prices and train timetables, later.
At a press conference on June 10, JR East President Yoichi Kise said, “We hope this will be a new type of fun night trip, not just a long-distance ride.”
JR East now uses another night train called “Cassiopeia,” but this train will stop running in June because it is getting too old.
(Japanese original by Yuhi Sugiyama, Business News Department)
Vocabulary
limited express: a faster train that stops at fewer stations
passenger: a person who travels on a train, bus, airplane, or other vehicles
private room: a room used by only one person or one group at a time
wheelchair: a chair with wheels used by people who can’t walk
reclining: moving a seat so you can lie back comfortably
press conference: a meeting where important information is given to news reporters
long-distance: traveling a long way
timetable: a schedule showing the times of train or bus arrivals and departures
