Crack found on train bogie in 1st serious incident for shinkansen

December 13, 2017

Osaka- West Japan Railway Co. or JR West, said Tuesday that a crack has been found on the bogie of a car of the N700 series bullet train used on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen lines.

The railway operator will carry out a detailed investigation. An emergency inspection conducted on other bogies manufactured by the same maker around the same time found no cracks or other problems, according to JR West.

The Japan Transport Safety Board designated the case as a serious incident that could have led to an accident, sending three investigators to Nagoya, the capital of Aichi Prefecture, central Japan. This is the first serious incident designation for Shinkansen, according to the transport ministry-affiliated board.

The operation of the Nozomi No. 34 train including the car with the bogie in question was canceled around 5:03 p.m. Monday (8:03 a.m. GMT), after the Shinkansen train bound for Tokyo Station from Hakata Station in southwestern Japan arrived at Nagoya Station of Central Japan Railway Co. <9022>, better known as JR Tokai, JR West said.

An inspection was conducted on the train at Nagoya Station, due to abnormal noise and burning smell reported by its crew members before its arrival at the station, and a crack was found on the outer part of the steel bogie of the car where the axle is fixed, JR West said. In addition, oil was found to be leaking in the gearbox connecting the axle with the motor, it said.

With no problems found in an inspection carried out early Sunday morning, the crack is believed to have appeared after that, JR West officials said.

None of some 1,000 passengers on the Nozomi No. 34 train was hurt in the incident. They transferred to subsequent trains to head for their destinations. Jiji Press