Toward an independent and internationally open Research Institute

The Railway Technical Research Institute of Japan has been striving to establish itself as an independent, reliable body open to international intercourse. Our efforts in research and development of MAGLEV railway have so advanced that we are searching in this spring the stage of technically verifying the feasibility of commercial operating of MAGLEV train at 500km/h with an elaborate program of tests aimed at superspeed. Meanwhile we are engaged in projects for speedup of infrastructure. When a big earthquake hit Hanshin and Awaji, we lost no time in joining the nationwide rescue work or reviewing the seismic standards of structures as well as wide-range anti-disaster research activities. In 1996, the Railway Technology Promotion Center was organized enlarging the sphere of our activities to cover private railways and various manufacturers. In April of the same year, a large-scale wind tunnel was built and began to operate as a powerful tool to cope with noise and other aerodynamic problems associated with Shinkansen. We shall continue to commit ourselves in the interest of the future railway and the society in general.