It is the western terminus of the high-speed Tōkaidō Shinkansen line from Tokyo, the eastern terminus of the San'yō Shinkansen and one of the main railway terminals in the north of Osaka.

The Shinkansen lines are physically joined, and many trains offer through service.

The new station was built in 1964 to avoid the engineering difficulties of running Shinkansen lines into the center of the city.

On the northern side of the station, an additional eastbound Shinkansen platform, Track 27, was opened on 16 March 2013.

Inside the station North South East (Hinode side)