I don’t know why OP is getting downvoted. This comment is correct. The economies of freight on rails are predicated on scale. The bigger the train, the better. It only requires a few locomotives that have the biggest maintenance costs. Cars are unpowered and require less maintenance. A train can transport thousands of tons. An average mid-size train in Europe would carry about 2000 tonnes of freight.
To add an electric motor per ton of cargo transported (as detailed in the article) adds an excessive amount of overhead costs to the cargo transported, in upfront costs, maintenance and environmental impact, making it less competitive than a regular freight line. With the space of the same infrastructure and probably the same investment, you could instead run a freight line, especially considering the distance between Osaka and Tokyo. Over time, the freight line wins out over the individual one ton self-propelled cargo wagons. Remember, every propulsion system breaks down and requires new parts and fixing. The more of them there are, the more complex your transportation system becomes, thus more expensive. An equivalent to a mid sized freight train in pods would require about 2000 electric motors, as opposed to one or two dedicated electrical locomotives.
They should instead improve the trains to be able to run mostly automated. This requires track sensors and advanced signaling.
I don’t know why OP is getting downvoted. This comment is correct. The economies of freight on rails are predicated on scale. The bigger the train, the better. It only requires a few locomotives that have the biggest maintenance costs. Cars are unpowered and require less maintenance. A train can transport thousands of tons. An average mid-size train in Europe would carry about 2000 tonnes of freight.
To add an electric motor per ton of cargo transported (as detailed in the article) adds an excessive amount of overhead costs to the cargo transported, in upfront costs, maintenance and environmental impact, making it less competitive than a regular freight line. With the space of the same infrastructure and probably the same investment, you could instead run a freight line, especially considering the distance between Osaka and Tokyo. Over time, the freight line wins out over the individual one ton self-propelled cargo wagons. Remember, every propulsion system breaks down and requires new parts and fixing. The more of them there are, the more complex your transportation system becomes, thus more expensive. An equivalent to a mid sized freight train in pods would require about 2000 electric motors, as opposed to one or two dedicated electrical locomotives.
They should instead improve the trains to be able to run mostly automated. This requires track sensors and advanced signaling.