The government plans to delay its plan to extend the Hokkaido Shinkansen Line, Japan’s northernmost bullet train route, to Sapporo by eight years to March 2039, partly due to tunnel construction difficulties, a source close to the matter said Saturday.
The 212-kilometer extension between Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto in southern Hokkaido and Sapporo, the island’s capital, has been complicated by a labor shortage in the construction sector and geological challenges, including massive rock formations and soft ground that are hindering tunnel work, the source said.
Tunnels account for about 80 percent of the extended segment, which will pass through areas home to the famed Niseko ski resort.
The current plan is to complete the project in the spring of 2031.
