December 30-31, 2008 Sleeping car special express “Hokutosei” between Ueno and Sapporo.
Until March 2012, it operated only in Hakodate and did not change direction in Aomori, so Hakodate-Sapporo was operated in reverse formation (the train window is on the Uchiura Bay/sea side.) Since 2008, only one round trip has been operated to secure time for Hokkaido Shinkansen construction in the Seikan Tunnel (Tsugaru Kaikyo Line).
On August 23, 2015, the “Hokutosei” was completely discontinued with a special train arriving at Ueno. In March 2016, the Shinkansen will open between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto stations as the new Hokkaido Shinkansen.