This Is the Alfa-X, the World’s Fastest Bullet Train

Belonging to Japanese rail operator JR East, the train will enter testing stages at the beginning of this weekend, but before that happens, the company presented the train at one of its locations in the Miyagi Prefecture.

According to Japanese publication Nikkei, the train is expected to reach speeds of up to 360 kph (224 mph), 40 kph more (25 mph) than the current record holder, the E5.

Testing of the train will take place on the Tohoku line between the cities of Sendai and Aomori. Twice a week the machine will be put through its paces as part of a program that runs well into 2021, when the first testing stage is expected to conclude. It is not until 2030 that the train is expected to enter service.

The train presented by JR East measures 250 meters in length (820 feet) and it comprises ten cars. Of its total length, 22 meters are reserved for the nose (72 feet), the longest such feature ever designed for a shinkansen.

Although perceived as such, this feature of the Japanese bullet trains is not actually a nose, but more of a beak, as it was inspired by birds. One of its main uses is to make trains both more aerodynamic and quieter.

Initially designed to link remote parts of Japan with the capital, the network of shinkansen rail tracks now cover well over 2,800 km (1,700 miles), also linking remote cities with each other.

This network of extremely fast trains is also one of the most reliable in the world, as they are literally never late. In 1997, for instance, the Japanese rail operator broke all records and registered a delay for the entire fleet of trains of just 18 seconds.

On a yearly basis, total delays usually do not exceed one minute and when that happens the company apologizes publicly.