Hakata is the western terminus of Japan’s Sanyo Shinkansen.
The Sanyo Shinkansen runs west from Shin-Osaka through major cities including Shin-Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima and Kokura before reaching Hakata Station in Fukuoka. The line forms a crucial continuation of the Tokaido Shinkansen corridor from Tokyo.
Hakata is often confused with Fukuoka because the station is located in Fukuoka city, in Hakata Ward. Through services can continue beyond Hakata on the Kyushu Shinkansen, but Hakata remains the Sanyo line’s western endpoint.
The Sanyo Shinkansen opened in stages during the 1970s, extending high-speed rail from Osaka toward western Honshu and northern Kyushu.