JAPAN- JR East’s Hydrogen-Powered Train

One such initiative is the HYBARI hydrogen-hybrid train, the first of its kind in Japan, which is being developed to achieve virtually zero emissions by 2050. Developed by JR East in collaboration with the Toyota Motor Corporation and Hitachi Ltd., combining their respective railroad and automobile technologies, the train’s main power source is electricity from the fuel cell, which uses hydrogen as its energy source, and from the battery. According to JR East, the train has a maximum speed of 100km/h and is capable of travelling up to 140 km on a single fill of high-pressure hydrogen. Driving tests have already been conducted and the company is aiming for commercialisation in 2030.

Japan’s advanced railway technology and knowledge, cultivated over 150 years of history, should now be able to drive the development of sustainable railway systems worldwide. What we must not forget is that each of us can encourage this development by including CO2 emissions as one of the criteria for the modes of transportation we choose in our daily lives.