Amtrak Acela and the Japan Rail Shinkansen

So I was able to take a trip last summer to Japan.  We purchased a Japan Rail pass for our visit and I highly recommend it if you plan on visiting more than one city.  It can get you just about anywhere in the country for a fixed cost.  It's also valid on multiple ferries and even some bus routes.

Japan is famous for its rail infrastructure and its bullet trains.  The reputation is well deserved.   The trains are spotless (which says more about Japanese Culture than the rail system per-se).  The trains have a bird-like nose to reduce the boom created when the trains enter a tunnel at speed.

I took a Shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagano.  The train went 125Mph for a lot of the journey and was very smooth.

Similarly we took a Shinkansen on our way to Hiroshima. It went even faster - 181 Mph and was also pretty smooth for how fast it was going.

By comparison heres the Acela between Wilmington, DC and Baltimore, MD :

So speed wise, we're not too far behind, but comfort/smoothness we have a ways to go.