Shinano Railway Line

The Shinano Railway Line (しなの鉄道線, Shinano Tetsudō-sen) is a 65.1 km railway line operated by the third-sector railway operating company Shinano Railway in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. It connects Karuizawa Station in Karuizawa with Shinonoi Station in Nagano.

Shinano Railway Line
A 115 series train at Sakaki Station, March 2008
Overview
Native nameしなの鉄道線
TypeCommuter rail
LocaleNagano Prefecture
TerminiKaruizawa
Shinonoi
Operation
Opened1 October 1997
OwnerShinano Railway
Rolling stock115 series EMUs
Technical
Line length65.1 km (40.5 mi)
Number of tracks2
Track gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Minimum radius400 m (1,300 ft)
Electrification1,500 V DC, overhead catenary
Operating speed100 km/h (60 mph)
Route map
Nagano Shinkansen
Shinetsu Main Line abandoned in 1997
0.0 Karuizawa
Kusakaru Electric Railway
Nagano Shinkansen
 4.0 Naka-Karuizawa
 7.2 Shinano-Oiwake
 13.2 Miyota
 18.3 Hirahara
22.0 Komoro
Nunobiki Electric Railway
 27.9 Shigeno
 31.3 Tanaka
34.7 Ōya
Ueda Maruko Electric Railway:
Maruko Line
37.1 Shinano-Kokubunji
Maruko Line
Nagano Shinkansen
40.0 Ueda
Ueda Electric Railway
44.4 Nishi-Ueda
47.9 Tekuno-Sakaki
50.4 Sakaki
54.9 Togura
57.1 Chikuma
59.9 Yashiro
61.8 Yashiro-kōkō-mae
Shinano (Chikuma) River
Shinano Railway Line
65.1
0.0
 Shinonoi
Shinetsu Main Line
(67.2)
(69.4)
Sai River
(71.5)
(74.4)
Shinetsu Main Line

Overview

Before October 1997, the right-of-way now belonging to the Shinano Railway was a part of the Shinetsu Main Line of East Japan Railway Company (JR East), and served as the main train route connecting Nagano and Tokyo. Upon completion of the Nagano Shinkansen in October 1997, JR East transferred all long distance operations to the shinkansen, and control of the Shinetsu Main Line between Karuizawa and Shinonoi was handed over to the newly formed Shinano Railway, which is majority owned by the Nagano Prefectural Government. Today, the line is a vital commuter transport route for communities in the east and north of Nagano Prefecture.

The line is electrified and double-tracked with a track gauge of 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) for its entire length. The speed limit is 100 km/h (reduced from 120 km/h as the Shinetsu Main Line).

Like many railways in rural parts of Japan, the line faces problems concerning decreased ridership and revenue.[1] In recent years, additional stations have been opened at Tekuno-Sakaki, Yashiro-kōkō-mae, and Shinano-Kokubunji in order to increase passenger numbers. Also, driver-only operation has been introduced on most of the line in order to reduce personnel costs.

Operations

Shinano Railway Line trains use the right-of-way of the Shinetsu Main Line between Shinonoi and Nagano. All trains terminate at Nagano, not Shinonoi.

As of April 2008, four round trains are operated as Rapids from Nagano. One in the morning from Komoro to Nagano, and two in the evening from Nagano to Ueda are named Shinano Sunrise and Shinano Sunset, require payment of surcharge between Nagano and Ueda.

Stations

"R" for Rapid (unnamed) and "S" for Shinano Sunset and Shinano Sunrise. Lower case letters indicate that some trains stop, while upper case letters indicate that all trains stop.

Station Japanese Stop Connections Location
Karuizawa 軽井沢 R   Hokuriku Shinkansen Karuizawa
Naka-Karuizawa 中軽井沢 R  
Shinano-Oiwake 信濃追分 R  
Miyota 御代田 R   Miyota
Hirahara 平原   Komoro
Komoro 小諸 R s ■ Koumi Line
Shigeno 滋野 r s Tōmi
Tanaka 田中 R s
Ōya 大屋 R s Ueda
Shinano-Kokubunji 信濃国分寺 r s
Ueda 上田 R S
Nishi-Ueda 西上田  
Tekuno-Sakaki テクノさかき   Sakaki
Sakaki 坂城 r  
Togura 戸倉 R   Chikuma
Chikuma 千曲 R  
Yashiro 屋代 R  
Yashiro-kōkō-mae 屋代高校前  
Shinonoi 篠ノ井 R   ■ Shinonoi Line Nagano
Shinetsu Main Line (Shinonoi – Nagano)
Imai 今井   Nagano
Kawanakajima 川中島 r  
Amori 安茂里  
Nagano 長野 R S

Rolling stock
  • A Shinano Railway 115 series EMU in June 2015

Former Rolling stock
  • A Shinano Railway 169 series EMU in January 2011

Shinano Railway uses trainsets that were inherited from JR East when the line was transferred. The trains were subsequently repainted into Shinano Railway's livery and refurbished. Many of the trains have video screens above the doors which feature commercials and other information. In general, the 115 series trains are used for local services, while the 169 series were used for rapid and liner trains.

History

The line first opened on 15 August 1888 as the 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) gauge steam-operated Naoetsu Line (直江津線) between Nagano and Ueda.[3] This was extended south from Ueda to Karuizawa in December 1888.[3] The line was electrified using a 1,500 V DC overhead wire system from June 1963.[3]

The third-sector operator Shinano Railway was established on 1 May 1996, and operations of the Shinetsu Line between Karuizawa and Shinanoi were transferred from JR East to the Shinano Railway from 1 October 1997.[3]

Driver only operation was introduced on some services from 5 January 2004.[3]

Former connecting lines
A train on the Kusatsu Light Railway

(Note - Prior to 1997, the stations below were part of the Shinetsu Main Line.)

  • Karuizawa Station: The Kusatsu Light Railway opened a 56 km 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) gauge line, including two switch backs, to Kusatsu Onsen between 1915 and 1926. The line was electrified at 600 V DC in 1924. In 1950, a typhoon resulted in a bridge being swept away, and the same thing occurred in 1959, resulting in the 38 km section from Karuizawa to Joshu Mihara closing in 1960. The rest of the line closed in 1962.
  • Komoro Station - The Nunobiki Electric Railway opened an 8 km line, electrified at 600 V DC, to Shimagawara in 1926 to transport construction materials for the Makato Azuma hydro-electric power station. When that traffic finished the revenue for the line was less than 50% of interest bill alone, and it closed in 1934.
  • Oya Station: The Maruko Railway opened a 7 km line to Maruko in 1918, and electrified the line at 600 V DC in 1924. The following year, it opened a 5 km electrified line from Oya to Ueda-Higashi. In 1944, the company merged with the Ueda Onsen Electric Railway (see next entry) creating the Maruko Ueda Electric Railway. Both lines closed in 1969.
  • Ueda Station: The Ueda Onsen Electric Railway opened a 13 km line to Sanada, and a 3 km branch from Motohara to Sochi between 1927 and 1928, both lines electrified at 1,500 V DC. In 1944, the company merged with the Maruko Electric Railway (see previous entry) creating the Maruko Ueda Electric Railway. Both lines closed in 1972.
  • Yashiro Station: The Kato Railway opened a 24 km line to Suzaka on the Nagano Electric Railway line in 1922, electrified it at 1,500 V DC in January 1926, and merged with that company in September the same year. CTC signalling was commissioned on the line in 1983, but due to falling patronage the line closed in 2012.
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See also

References

This article incorporates material from the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia.

  1. Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (ed.). Tetsudō Tōkei Nenpō 鉄道統計年報 [Annual of Railway Statistics] (in Japanese).
  2. しなの鉄道 SR1系 営業運転（2020年7月4日～）. 鉄道コム. 19 June 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  3. Terada, Hirokazu (19 January 2013). データブック日本の私鉄 [Databook: Japan's Private Railways]. Japan: Neko Publishing. p. 83. ISBN 978-4-7770-1336-4.
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