Kyushu Shinkansen - Nagasaki (West Kyushu) Route

Nagasaki (West Kyushu) Route

A Shinkansen line from Fukuoka to Nagasaki, initially known as the Nagasaki Shinkansen (長崎新幹線?), was laid out in the 1973 Basic Plan. Renamed as the Nagasaki Route (長崎ルート?), then changed to the West Kyushu Route (西九州ルート, Nishi Kyūshū rūto?) in 1995, the planning of the line has been slowed down by concerns over the necessity of duplicating the existing narrow-gauge Nagasaki Main Line and Sasebo Line between Shin-Tosu and Takeo-Onsen, and local opposition over the final section in Nagasaki city.

As of 2011, the current plan is to continue using the existing track from Shin-Tosu to Takeo-Onsen and build new narrow gauge Super Tokkyū track from Takeo-Onsen to Nagasaki, with trains operating at a maximum speed of 200 km/h. This is expected to allow a travel time of around 1 hour 24 minutes between the two cities, versus 1 hour 45 minutes currently. If Gauge Change Trains are operated, the time will be cut to 1 hour 19 minutes, and if the entire route is converted to Shinkansen track, travel time will be just 41 minutes.

Construction of the first 45.7 km segment between Takeo-Onsen and Isahaya began on 28 April 2008. Debate over the final section between Isahaya and Nagasaki continued for several years, before construction was finally approved by the government in December 2011. The tentative completion date is 2018.) On June 30th, 2012, the extension to Nagasaki was approved for construction with an estimated completion by fiscal 2022.