Japan to offer bullet train technology to Taiwan

Central Japan Railway Co plans to provide Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp with technology for the running of its bullet train operations, including earthquake response measures, it was reported on Saturday. The companies will sign a contract within several months, Kyodo News said, quoting sources close to the matter. Central Japan Railway is considering giving the Taiwanese firm its know-how on disaster control as well as maintenance and inspection of train cars, tracks and signals, Kyodo said. Japanese train firms, facing the risk of massive earthquakes, have introduced cutting-edge systems to automatically control operations in case of major jolts. It will be the first time for the Japanese company to strike such a deal with a railway company overseas, it said. Taiwan has been using bullet trains based on a Japanese model, marking Japan’s first successful export of its high-speed trains.