Kabe Line
Kabe Line | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Type | Regional rail |
| System | Hiroshima City Network |
| Locale | Hiroshima Prefecture |
| Termini |
Yokogawa Kabe |
| Stations | 12 |
| Operation | |
| Opening | 1909 |
| Owner | JR West |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 14.0 km (8.7 mi) |
| No. of tracks | 1 |
| Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) |
| Electrification | 1,500 V DC, overhead lines |
| Operating speed | 65 km/h (40 mph) |
The Kabe Line (可部線 Kabe-sen) is a rail line operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) within the city of Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. It begins at Hiroshima Station and terminates at Kabe Station in Asakita-ku. It is one of the commuter lines to Hiroshima.
History
Private railway
The section now in operation of the Kabe Line was originally constructed by a private company and later purchased by Japanese Government Railways.
The section was opened by Dainippon Kidō in four phases.
- December 19, 1909: Yokogawa Station to Gion Station
- November 19, 1910: Gion Station to Furuichibashi Station
- December 25, 1910: Furuichibashi Station to Ōtagawabashi Station
- June 12, 1911: Ōtagwabashi Station to Kabe Station
The line was handed over to Kabe Kidō on March 11, 1919. Kabe Kidō was merged to Hiroshima Denki Kidō on May 1, 1926.
The line was originally built to 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) gauge and not electrified. The line was electrified and re-gauged (to the national standard of 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)) in the following steps.
- November 9, 1928: Yokogawa – Furuichibashi section. Bus service temporary replaces rest of the line. Matsubara Station closes and Taishi Station opens.
- August 10, 1929: Furuichibashi – Shichikenjaya section.
- December 2, 1929: Ōtagawabashi – Kabe section.
The line was handed over to the Kōhin Railway on July 1, 1931. On December 1, 1935, the line's legal status was changed from light railway to railway.
After nationalization
The line was nationalized on September 1, 1936, and became a part of Japanese Government Railways as the Kabe Line. Simultaneously, some station names were changed as follows:
- Oshibakoenguchi Station to Mitaki Station
- Nagatsuka Station to Aki-Nagatsuka Station
- Ōtagawabashi Station to Kami-Yagi Station
- Nakashima Station to Aki-Nakashima Station
- Kōhin-Kabe Station to Kabe Station
JGR extended the line beyond Kabe Station. The extended sections were not electrified.
- October 13, 1936: Extension to Aki-Imuro Station completed
- March 30, 1954: Extension to Kake Station completed (on completion of this extension, the total length of Japanese National Railways exceeded 20,000 km.)
- July 27, 1969: Extension to Sandankyō Station completed
The line voltage was raised from 750 V to 1,500 V (JNR standard) on April 23, 1962.
Since September 4, 1968, the line had been on the government's list of deficit-ridden railways where service was to be discontinued.
After JR West took over the line in 1987, wanman driver-only operation was introduced on the Kabe – Sandankyō section.
Service on the Kabe – Sandankyō section was discontinued on December 1, 2003.
Beginning in summer 2007, the ICOCA card can be used in all stations in the Hiroshima City Network, including all stations on the Kabe Line.
On 4 February 2011, it was announced that a 1.6 km section of the abandoned segment, between Kabe Station and the former Kōdo Station, would be electrified and reopened. This will be the first such reopening by a JR Group company since the privatization of Japanese National Railways (JNR).[1] Operation is scheduled to resume from fiscal 2015.[2]
Discontinued/suspended section data
- Operator: West Japan Railway Company (Class-1 railroad)
- Official line length: 46.2 km
- Gauge: 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
- Stations: 21 (exincluding Kabe Station)
- Double track: none (entirely single track)
- Electrified sections: non
- Closure system:
- section between Kabe Station to Kake Station: Special automatic closure type
- section between Kake Station to Sandankyō Station: Staff closure type
References
- ↑ "JR廃線、初の復活…広島市の可部線" [First-ever reopening of an abandoned JR line: the Kabe Line in Hiroshima]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). 4 February 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
- ↑ "可部線、15年度に延伸" [Kabe Line to be extended in fiscal 2015]. The Chigoku Shimbun Online (in Japanese). Japan: Chugoku Shimbun. 1 January 2013. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
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