Groundbreaking on New Shinkansen Lines (September 1991) and Establishment of Railway Development Fund (October 9, 1991)


    Groundbreaking took place in September 1991 on three new sections of Japan's five New Shinkansen Lines between: Morioka - Aomori (Tohoku route), Karuizawa -Nagano (Hokuriku route) and Yatsushiro - Nishi-Kagoshima (Kagoshima route), in addition to Takasaki - Karuizawa (Hokuriku route) which was already under construction. The five lines include one in Hokkaido, one in Tohoku (Morioka - Aomori), one in Hokiruku, and two in Kyushu (Kagoshima Route and Nagasaki Route).
    The Railway Development Fund was established on October 1, 1991 for comprehensive and effective funding of railways development. It aims to form a high-speed railway network to promote balanced national development and establish a urban rail network to maintain and promote the functions of large cities.
    The Fund is financed part of income of transfer already operating Shinkansen lines and subsidies coming thusfar from the national general account. Grants are made as follows:
(1) Grants and non-interest loans (NTT-B) for the construction of New Shinkansen lines
(2) Grants and non-interest loans for activation of inportant trunk rail lines and development of urban railway
(3) Grants for the Yamanashi experimental linear railway
(4) Grants for small- and medium-sized regional private railways


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