Amazon Japan began transporting packages between regional facilities using Japan Railway’s Shinkansen bullet trains. The approach aims to reduce delivery times and carbon dioxide emissions by using high-speed rail that can cut travel time from Tokyo to Osaka from about eight hours to about two and a half hours. The trains run on electricity supplied through an overhead electrical system. Amazon’s broader sustainability efforts include a net-zero delivery initiative launched in 2019, expectations for half of shipments to be net zero by 2030, and a Climate Pledge commitment to reach net-zero carbon across global operations by 2040. Amazon also uses other low-emissions delivery methods such as e-cargo bikes and drones. Generative AI projects have increased carbon emissions due to higher energy use from AI chips and data center expansion.
"Amazon Japan has started using the country's iconic bullet trains to move packages between facilities across different regions. The company said teaming up with Japan Railway is part of its efforts to cut both delivery times and carbon dioxide emissions. Japan's Shinkansen can reach speeds of up to 200 mph and can cut down travel times, say, from Tokyo to Osaka from around 8 hours to two-and-a-half hours. They also run on electricity delivered by an overhead electrical system."
"Back in 2019, the company launched an initiative that aims for net zero carbon emissions for deliveries. Amazon said back then that it expects half of its shipments to be net zero by 2030, with help from electric vehicles, renewable energy and renewable packaging. Under the Climate Pledge, which it co-founded, it made the commitment to reach net-zero carbon across its global operations by 2040. Transporting parcels via the Shinkansen is definitely one of the ways Amazon can achieve those goals."
"However, the company's generative AI projects are undermining its sustainability goals. In the sustainability report is released in 2025, Amazon admitted that its overall carbon emissions grew for the first time since 2022. It blamed most of that growth on its data center rollout, with the increase in its energy use coming from AI chips that require more power to run and to cool than traditional chips. The construction of its data centers also contributed to the growth of its carbon emissions."
"Under its partnership with Japan Railway, Amazon is transporting packages on the non-passenger spaces of the bullet trains on three routes, which connect its operations in the Greater Tokyo area with central and northern Japan. It started moving packages on the Tohoku Sh"
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