Maglev Route Through Japan Alps Boasts Lowest Cost, Highest Demand

TOKYO (Nikkei)--Central Japan Railway Co., or JR Tokai, on Tuesday compiled estimates, including data on operating costs and demand, for three possible routes of a maglev train line connecting the Tokyo and Nagoya areas that JR Tokai hopes to start operating in 2025.

According to the estimates, the most direct route, which would pass through the southern Japan Alps and is the line JR Tokai hopes to construct, would require 162 billion yen in annual operating costs, the least of the three. Meanwhile, the northern route, which the Nagano Prefecture government has lobbied for, would likely cost 181 billion yen annually to operate.

As for demand, which is calculated by multiplying the number of passengers by distances traveled, it is estimated that the most direct route would lead the other two, at 16.7 billion passenger-kilometers annually, while the northern route's ridership is projected at 15.3 billion passenger-kilometers.

The total costs of renewing facilities for the northern route are likely to be 3.42 trillion yen over a 50-year period, 510 billion yen more than for the direct route.

(The Nikkei July 21 evening edition)