The needle-nosed bullet train racing past the base of Mount Fuji is one of the most enduring images of Japan, a postcard mix of high-tech and traditional beauty. This retains an appeal even though the Shinkansen has become utterly mundane for most residents of the archipelago. Hurtling down the Tokaido Line toward Osaka at 270 kilometers per hour in its sleek white fuselage is about as remarkable as riding a taxi. Yet tribute is due to these railway rockets.
When the Tokaido Shinkansen marked its 40th anniversary in October 2004, it could boast an astonishing safety and performance record: 4.16 billion passengers carried, 1.5 billion kilometers traveled, and not a single injury or fatality from derailment or collision. Each day it transports 360,000 passengers and completes 300 runs. In fiscal 2003, its average delay for departure and arrival was all of six seconds. The other bullet train lines have similar records.
On that basis alone, the Shinkansen is a spectacular triumph. Yet the English literature on it remains scant, and Christopher Hood's "Shinkansen: From Bullet Train to Symbol of Modern Japan" is a welcome, informative survey of the topic.