OSAKA -- Osaka Metro Co. will introduce new "400 series" train cars in April 2023 on the Chuo Line, which will connect the downtown area and the venue for the World Expo to be held in the city in 2025, the subway operator announced on Dec. 9.

       The new train cars will be made of aluminum, and their design, with an octagonal front face, is reminiscent of a spaceship. The main color of the body of each car will be silver. With large glass windshields on the front, the cars are designed for drivers to see outside well. There will be no ads hanging from the ceiling, creating a sense of openness inside the train. Security cameras will be installed, and the trains will also have air purifiers as a countermeasure against the coronavirus.

       New technology will be adopted to constantly monitor each instrument's operating status remotely and to send operational commands from control centers. Autonomous operation tests will also be conducted in fiscal 2024.

       This artist's rendition provided by Osaka Metro Co. shows inside a new train car.

       The company estimates that the total cost of introducing 23 trains consisting of 138 new cars will reach around 30 billion yen (about $264 million).

       "We've made the cars fun to ride while pursuing safety and security," Osaka Metro President Hideaki Kawai said at a news conference. "We'd like to contribute to the success of the Expo by creating a 'feeling of excitement' among passengers on their way to the venue."

       A new metro station will be constructed on the artificial island of Yumeshima -- the Expo venue -- in Osaka's Konohana Ward, and the existing Chuo Line will be extended there.

       (Japanese original by Masaki Takahashi, Osaka City News Department)

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