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Train on Train
Japanese concept for train piggybacking From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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"Train on Train" (トレイン・オン・トレイン, Torein on Torein) is a term used in Japanese rail transport. It refers to the concept of piggybacking, carrying narrow-gauge wagons on broader-gauge flat wagons. "Train on Train" uses a similar concept to Transporter wagons and Rollbocks.
![]() | This article's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. (October 2020) |

The need for "Train on Train" arose when Japan's Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) was planning for standard-gauge Hokkaido Shinkansen high-speed trains to operate in the undersea Seikan Tunnel from 2016. The problem was that narrow-gauge freight trains did not operate at high speeds. Since the tunnel is 53.85 km (33.46 mi) long, incorporating the slower narrow-gauge trains into the timetable would significantly disrupt the planned high-speed services. It was also considered technically difficult to build new freight train shelters within the Seikan Tunnel. JR Hokkaido would investigate a solution of mounting narrow-gauge freight trains on to faster standard-gauge freight trains.[1] JR Hokkaido applied for a patent for train-on-train on February 22, 2006, and has continued research and development to realize a Shinkansen freight train since then.[2] The development of "Train on Train" was effectively frozen in 2015. And the Hokkaido Shinkansen opened on March 26, 2016, without "Train on Train" being put into practical use.
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When the Hokkaido Shinkansen opened between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate in 2016, high-speed Shinkansen trains shared the dual gauge tracks through the Seikan Tunnel which links the main island of Honshu with Hokkaido. While in the tunnel, freight trains on the narrow-gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) rails are limited to 110 km/h (70 mph). The "Train on Train" concept involved loading narrow-gauge KoKi 100 container wagons on to specially built standard-gauge wagons to allow operation at speeds of up to 200 km/h (120 mph).[1] The speeds in the Seikan Tunnel were reported as having been increased to 160 km/h (99 mph) after extensive testing in 2014.[3]

The "Train on Train" concept was announced in 2006[4] and a full-size mockup vehicle was built and demonstrated at Naebo Works in 2007. While the next phase was to build a prototype train for actual operation this plan was never followed through on.[1][5] beginning in 2010, JR Freight started developing a new Electric Locomotive, the Class EH800 to run on 20/25 kV AC to operate through the Seikan Tunnel.[6] These locomotives would have hauled "Train on Train" services through the tunnel. A "Forum 2050" presentation by JR Hokkaido in 2010 stated that using a "double traverser" arrangement would allow an entire train to be transferred to and from the '"Train on Train" wagons in approximately 10 minutes.[7] [8] As of October 2024, the concept of "Train on Train" has not been implemented.
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See also
- Gauge Change Train, an experimental Japanese train designed to operate on both narrow-gauge and standard-gauge routes
- Modalohr
- Piggyback (transportation)
- Roadrailer
- Rolling highway
- Variable gauge
References
External links
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