Due to the different track gauges used, Shinkansen trains and conventional trains cannot run on the same tracks and passengers are forced to transfer at intermediate junction. The Gauge Changing Train currently being developed automatically changes the distance between its wheels while travelling along a section of the track called a gauge changing section. A prototype three-car test train was built in 1998. After narrow gauge track tests were conducted in Japan in early 1999, high-speed performance tests and endurance tests were started at the Transportation Technology Center, near Pueblo in Colorado, U.S.A. The author will explain the overview of the development plan and the test results to date.

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