San'yō Main Line

San'yō Main Line
321 series and 223-1000 series EMUs on a 4-track section in Kobe
Overview
Type	Heavy rail, commuter rail
System	Urban Network (Kōbe - Kamigōri, Hyōgo - Wadamisaki) Hiroshima City Network (Shiraichi - Minami-Iwakuni)
Locale	Kansai, Chugoku, Kyushu regions
Termini	Kōbe, Hyōgo Moji, Wadamisaki
Stations	124
Operation
Opening	1872
Owner	JR West JR Kyushu
Operator(s)	JR West JR Kyushu JR Freight
Technical
Line length	537.1 km (333.7 mi) 528.1 km (328.1 mi) (Kōbe - Shimonoseki) 6.3 km (3.9 mi) (Shimonoseki - Moji) 2.7 km (1.7 mi) (Hyōgo - Wadamisaki)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	1,500 V DC overhead catenary (Kōbe - Shimonoseki, Hyōgo - Wadamisaki) 20 kV AC 60 Hz overhead catenary (Shimonoseki - Moji)
Operating speed	130 km/h (81 mph) (Kōbe - Okayama) 120 km/h (75 mph) (Okayama - Shimonoseki) 85 km/h (55 mph) (Shimonoseki - Moji, Hyōgo - Wadamisaki)

JR West 117 series EMU

JR Kyushu 415 series EMU

Freight train with Class EF67 bank engine

The San'yō Main Line (山陽本線, San'yō-honsen) is major railway line owned by JR Group companies in western Japan, connecting Kobe Station and Moji Station, largely running parallel the coast of the Inland Sea, in other words the southern edge of western Honshu. The Sanyō Shinkansen line runs largely parallel to its route since 1972. The name Sanyō derived from the ancient region and highway Sanyōdō, the road on the sunny (south) side of the mountains.

The Sanyō Main Line is operated by the two JR companies West Japan Railway Company (JR West) and Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). The Wadamisaki Line, a short section of line in length of 2.7 km between Hyōgo and Wadamisaki stations in Kobe is technically part of the Sanyō Main Line. Also a short section connecting Kitakyushu Freight Terminal forms part of the Sanyō Main Line.

Basic data

• Operators, distances: 537.1 km / 333.7 mi.
  • West Japan Railway Company (Category-1, Services and tracks)
    • From Kobe to Shimonoseki: 528.1 km / 328.1 mi.
    • From Hyōgo to Wadamisaki: 2.7 km / 1.7 mi.
  • Kyushu Railway Company (Category-1, Services and tracks)
    • From Shimonoseki to Moji: 6.3 km / 3.9 mi.
  • Japan Freight Railway Company (Category-2, Services)
    • From Kobe to Kitakyushu Freight Terminal: 534.4 km / 332.1 mi.
• Gauge: 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
• Stations:
  • Passenger stations: 124
  • Freight terminals: 5
• Track:
  • Quadruple-track line:
    • From Kobe to Nishi-Akashi: 22.8 km / 14.1 mi.
    • From Kaitaichi to Hiroshima: 6.4 km / 4.0 mi.
  • Double-track line:
    • From Nishi-Akashi to Kaitaichi: 275.5 km / 171.2 mi.
    • From Hiroshima to Moji: 208.0 km / 129.2 mi.
  • Single-track line:
    • From Hyōgo to Wadamisaki
• Electric supply: Whole the line (1,500 V DC. Excluding inside Moji Station and Kitakyūshū Freight Terminal, which is 20,000 V AC, 60 Hz.)
• Railway signalling:
  • From Kobe to Moji: Automatic
  • From Hyōgo to Wadamisaki: Special Automatic (Track Circuit Detection); a simplified automatic system.
• Maximum speed at service:
  • From Kobe to Himeji: 130 km/h
  • From Himeji to Okayama: Tilting trains 130 km/h, others 120 km/h
  • From Okayama to Shimonoseki: 120 km/h
  • From Shimonoseki to Moji: 85 km/h
  • From Hyōgo to Wadamisaki: 85 km/h
• CTC centers:
  • From Kobe to Kamigōri: Shin-Ōsaka Operation Control Center
  • From Kamigōri to Itozaki: Okayama Transportation Control Room
  • From Itozaki to Shimonoseki: Hiroshima Operation Control Center
  • From Shimonoseki to Moji: Hakata Operation Control Center
• CTC system:
  • From Kobe to Kamigōri: Safety Urban Network Traffic System (SUNTRAS)

Stations

From Kobe to Himeji (JR Kobe Line)

See the JR Kobe Line article for the list.

From Himeji to Itozaki

Ra: Rapid (快速, Kaisoku)

SR: Special Rapid (新快速, Shin-Kaisoku)

SL: Rapid Sun Liner (快速サンライナー, Kaisoku Sanrainā)

• All trains stop at stations signed "+". Some trains stop at "*". No trains (other than local) stop at "-".
• Rapid trains coming from Osaka/Kobe area become local trains from Akashi and westward.
• Rapid Sun Liner becomes a local train except between Okayama and Fukuyama.
• Rapid trains from Hiroshima City Network stop at all the stations in this section. They become local trains from Okayama and eastward.

From Itozaki to Tokuyama (Hiroshima City Network)

Ra: Rapid Service

• All trains stop at stations signed "+". No trains (other than local) stop at "-".
• Rapid Service runs from suburbs to Hiroshima on morning.

Tokuyama to Moji

• Hiroshima City Network Rapid trains stop at all the stations in this section.

Wadamisaki Line

See the Wadamisaki Line article.

History

The main stretch of line between Kobe Station and Shimonoseki Station was originally constructed by the private company Sanyō Railway between the 1880s and 1901. The section between Hyōgo Station (in Kobe) and Akashi Station (in Akashi, Hyōgo) opened first in 1888. In 1889 the line was extended to the east to Kobe Station and Tatsuno Station (in Tatsuno, Hyōgo Prefecture) to the west. The Sanyō Railway was gradually extended to the west, and finally in 1901 it reached Bakan Station, the current-day Shimonoseki Station. Under the Railway Nationalization Act of 1906 it was purchased by the Japanese government and renamed Sanyō Main Line.

The Sanyō Main Line runs mainly along the Inland Sea but some parts could be shortened by tunnels. In 1934, the Gantoku Line between Iwakuni and Tokuyama (today Shūnan, Yamaguchi) was opened and replaced the former line which runs through Yanai along the Inland Sea. In 1944, this new alignment was replaced again by the previous coastal alignment because the coastal line was upgraded to two tracks, as a part of track duplication between Kobe and Shimonoseki.

The Sanyō Main Line was connected to Kyushu by ferry from Shimonoseki and Shimonosekiko Station (Port Shimonoseki). In 1942, the Kanmon Tunnel under the Kanmon Straits was completed and the Sanyō Main Line was extended to Moji Station.

Except for the Wadamisaki Line, the entire line was electrified in 1964, the year the Tōkaidō Shinkansen opened between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka. Between Shin-Ōsaka Station and Ōsaka Station, many expresses ran on the Sanyō Main Line and it serves as a means of transport running through Western Honshu and connecting to Kyushu. The Shinkansen was extended as the Sanyō Shinkansen line. It was extended first to Okayama Station in 1972, and then to Hakata Station in 1975. In both occasions many expresses were made obsolete. Since 1972, the Sanyō Main Line has been mainly used by local and freight services.

See also

• JR Kobe Line

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