Japan: The operators have announced their plans to withdraw two Doctor Yellow inspection trains produced more than 20 years ago. Currently, the dedicated trains provide track monitoring on the route of 1,100 km between Tokyo and Hakata, operating at a maximum speed of 270 km/h.
The vehicles are used for measuring deformation of rails and wear of catenary, detecting swaying and vibrations, and collecting data for the relevant track maintenance.
Now the operators are going to delegate these functions to the high-speed Shinkansen N700S passenger trains (produced by Hitachi Rail and Nippon Sharyo since 2020) which are to be fitted with the necessary inspection equipment. By the way, JR Central has earlier announced the development of the on-board catenary check system to be installed on the roofs of high-speed trains. JR Central and JR West will thus provide infrastructure inspection during their regular passenger service.
