Passenger service began in 1872, with a steam locomotive that linked Shimbashi station, in Tokyo, to the nearby city of Yokohama, thereby setting the stage for what was to become a nationwide rail network. It took 17 more years to link by rail the main cities along the old Tokaido (Eastern Sea Route), so that in July 1889 one could travel the entire way from Tokyo to Kobe by train. A single departure per day made the 589.5kilometer (366.3-mile) journey in about 20 hours. The successive introduction of diesel and electric trains shortened the time on this Speed and efficiency through technological advancementheavily shortened the time on this heavily traveled route to under 7 hours, and the Shinkansen (bullet train) eventually reduced the journey to under 4 hours.Until it was privatized and split into separate regional companies in 1987, the Japan National Railways (JNR) operated a nationwide passenger and freight rail network. Successors of JNR presently include the six passenger railway companies of the JR (Japan Railway) group, a freight railway company, and several affiliated companies. The total rail system, including the JR group and other railway companies, comprises 27,929 operation kilometers. In 2015, the system transported 24.0 billion passengers.