ONE of the world's fastest trains arrived in the region yesterday - travelling at a rather less-than-impressive speed.

In its native Japan, the Bullet train achieves speeds of up to 300 kilometres-per-hour.

But it was moving at a comparative snail's pace when it pulled into York yesterday, lumbering along the road on the back of a low-loader.

Its arrival marked journey's end as the locomotive is about to become one of the star exhibits at the city's National Railway Museum (NRM).

The 54-tonne loco, which has travelled millions of miles in Japan in the past 25 years, set out on a 10,000-mile voyage to Britain earlier this year.

It arrived in mid-May and has been in store at Wroughton airfield, near Swindon, before making the final leg to its destination yesterday.

When it goes on show to the public from July 14 it will become the first rail vehicle built and run outside Britain to enter the national collection.

Alongside icons like Mallard, Duchess of Hamilton and City of Truro, the Japanese Series 0 will open the next chapter in the Story of the Train and heralds a new international era for the world's biggest railway museum.

The 82ft leading car was built in 1976 as part of a fleet of high-speed trains for the Shinkansen, which means "new main line".

Car 22-141 was withdrawn from service in October last year and was offered to the NRM by West Japan Railway.

"There is no doubt that visitors to the NRM will be able to explore one of the most impressive and recognisable rail icons of all time," said Andrew Scott, head of the museum.

"If you look back over the history of railways, there have been many defining moments. In Britain, we think of City of Truro topping 100mph, Mallard's world speed record, the introduction of high-speed diesel trains.

"But the launch of the Shinkansen was arguably the most important breakthrough in rail technology since Rocket won the Rainhill Trials.

"Instead of struggling within the confines of an essentially Victorian network like the rest of the world, the Japanese started from scratch and 'reinvented' the railway."