(しんかんせん)

bullet train / Shinkansen

(じどううんてん)

autonomous driving; self-driving

(しけん)

exam

(すすむ)

to advance, to progress

(てつどう)

railway; railroad

(かいしゃ)

company

(じどう)

automatic

(はしる)

to run

(ぎじゅつ)

skill, technology

(すすめる)

to advance; to move forward

(うんてんし)

(train) driver; motorman

(はっしゃ)

departure (of a vehicle)

(ぼたん)

button

(おす)

to push

(あと)

remaining; left; more

(しゃりょう)

train car / vehicle

(じぶん)

oneself

(そくど)

speed

(ちょうせい)

adjustment; regulation

(きめる)

to decide

(いち)

position / location

(とまる)

to stop

(はいけい)

background

(ひとでぶそく)

labour shortage; shortage of workers

(しょうらい)

future

(ひと)

person / people

(へる)

to decrease / to diminish

(よそう)

prediction, forecast

(すくない)

few, scarce

(にんずう)

number of people; headcount

(あんぜん)

safety

(うんこう)

operation (of a train or bus service)

(しくみ)

structure, system, mechanism

(もとめる)

to seek, request

(まず)

first of all

(やかん)

nighttime; evening (hours)

(かいそう)

out-of-service run; deadheading (of a train)

(れっしゃ)

train

(じつようか)

putting into practical use

(めざす)

to aim for

(けいかく)

plan

(じょうきゃく)

passenger

(のせる)

to put aboard / give a ride

(じしん)

earthquake

(つよい)

strong

(かぜ)

wind

(いじょうじ)

emergency; abnormal situation

(どう)

how / in what way

(たいおう)

response, handling

(かだい)

issue, problem, challenge

(のこる)

to remain / to stay behind

(のる)

to ride, board

(かんし)

monitoring; watching over

(かたち)

shape, form

(だんかいてき)

gradual; step by step

(はじめる)

to begin, start

(ほうしん)

policy, course of action

to make/let something do (causative form)

Godan verbs form the causative by changing -u to -aseru. 走る becomes 走らせる, so 新幹線を自動で走らせる技術 is technology that makes the Shinkansen run automatically.

is doing, has been doing (ongoing state/action)

Expresses a continuing action or resulting state. Formed with て-form + いる/います. Can describe an action in progress or a state that continues from a past change.

to be done (passive form)

Ru-verbs take られる to form the passive. 決められた位置 means "a position that has been decided (in advance)" — the article never says who decided it, which is typical of news writing.

nominalizing a verb phrase with の

Used in 「みんなの前で話をするのは初めてです」to nominalize the verb phrase so it can serve as the topic of the sentence.

to become

Expresses a change of state; Kawai became the new commissioner of the Sports Agency.

and (formal ～ている)

Formal/written form of ～ていて, connecting clauses. Here competition is becoming fierce, and... (激しくなっており).

Even ~; also at ~

Particle でも after a noun means 'even' or 'also at.' 首相官邸の庭でも means 'even at the Prime Minister's residence garden.'

can do / be able to (potential)

In 運転できない it expresses the potential of being able (or not able) to drive a car.

however, provided that

A formal conjunction adding a qualification or condition to the preceding statement.

in order to ~

Dictionary form + には indicates a condition required to achieve a goal. To deliver nengajō on Jan 1, you must mail by Dec 25.

such as / etc.

Used to give examples from a larger group.

the question of whether/how ...

An embedded question (どう対応するか) is packaged with という so it can modify a noun. どう対応するかという課題 = "the issue of how to respond."

as is, remain in state

Indicates a state that remains unchanged.

新幹線で自動運転の試験が進む

Automated driving trials move forward on the Shinkansen

鉄道会社が、新幹線を自動で走らせる技術の試験を進めています。

A railway company is pressing ahead with trials of technology that runs the Shinkansen automatically.

運転士が発車のボタンを押すと、あとは車両が自分で速度を調整し、決められた位置に止まります。

Once the driver presses the departure button, the train then adjusts its own speed and stops at a predetermined position.

背景にあるのは、人手不足です。

Behind this lies a shortage of workers.

将来、運転士になる人が減ると予想されており、少ない人数でも安全に運行できる仕組みが求められています。

The number of people becoming train drivers is expected to fall in the future, and a system that can run services safely with fewer staff is needed.

まずは夜間の回送列車から実用化を目指す計画です。

The plan is to aim for practical use first with out-of-service trains running at night.

ただし、乗客を乗せて走るには、地震や強い風などの異常時にどう対応するかという課題が残ります。

However, before trains can run with passengers on board, the question of how to respond to emergencies such as earthquakes and strong winds remains.

会社は、運転士が乗ったまま監視する形から段階的に始める方針です。

The company plans to start in stages, beginning with an arrangement in which the driver stays on board and monitors the train.