Aoimori Railway Line
| Aoimori Railway Line | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Aoimori Railway 701 series EMU, September 2010 | |||
| Overview | |||
| Type | Regional rail | ||
| Locale | Aomori Prefecture, Japan | ||
| Termini |
Metoki Aomori | ||
| Stations | 26 | ||
| Operation | |||
| Opening | 1891 | ||
| Owner | Aomori Prefecture | ||
| Operator(s) | Aoimori Railway Company | ||
| Rolling stock | 701 series EMUs | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 121.9 km (75.7 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) | ||
| Electrification | 20 kV AC, 50 Hz overhead catenary | ||
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Legend
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The Aoimori Railway Line (青い森鉄道線 Aoimori Tetsudō-sen) is a rail line in Japan. It connects Metoki Station in the town of Sannohe to Aomori Station in Aomori Prefecture.[1]
Organization
The Aoimori Railway Line is operated by the Aoimori Railway Company, a "third sector" publicly and privately owned company. The railway facilities and tracks are owned by the local prefectural government as a "Category 3 Railway Business" under the Railway Business Act of Japan. The Aoimori Railway Company leases these facilities from the government and is responsible for operation of passenger trains on the tracks. This scheme is intended to mitigate the company's burden as an owner of fixed assets and is known as "track/service separation" (上下分離方式 jōge bunri hōshiki).
JR East overnight sleeping car limited express services continue to use the line on services between Tokyo and Hokkaido. Japan Freight Railway Company (JR Freight), the nationwide freight train operator, also uses the line for freight services.
For maintenance work, the line relies on the services of the Hachinohe Rinkai Railway Line.
Station list
| Station | Japanese | Distance (km)[2] | Transfers | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Between stations |
Total | |||||
| Metoki | 目時 | - | 0.0 | Iwate Galaxy Railway Line | Sannohe | Aomori |
| Sannohe | 三戸 | 5.5 | 5.5 | Nanbu | ||
| Suwanotaira | 諏訪ノ平 | 4.0 | 9.5 | |||
| Kenyoshi | 剣吉 | 5.3 | 14.8 | |||
| Tomabechi | 苫米地 | 3.4 | 18.2 | |||
| Kitatakaiwa | 北高岩 | 2.8 | 21.0 | Hachinohe | ||
| Hachinohe | 八戸 | 4.9 | 25.9 | Tōhoku Shinkansen, Hachinohe Line | ||
| Mutsu-Ichikawa | 陸奥市川 | 6.9 | 32.8 | |||
| Shimoda | 下田 | 4.2 | 37.0 | Oirase | ||
| Mukaiyama | 向山 | 5.2 | 42.2 | |||
| Misawa | 三沢 | 4.7 | 46.9 | Misawa | ||
| Kogawara | 小川原 | 6.6 | 53.5 | Tōhoku | ||
| Kamikitachō | 上北町 | 3.9 | 57.4 | |||
| Ottomo | 乙供 | 6.9 | 64.3 | |||
| Chibiki | 千曳 | 6.6 | 70.9 | |||
| Noheji | 野辺地 | 6.4 | 77.3 | Ōminato Line | Noheji | |
| Karibasawa | 狩場沢 | 6.5 | 83.8 | Hiranai | ||
| Shimizugawa | 清水川 | 4.7 | 88.5 | |||
| Kominato | 小湊 | 6.0 | 94.5 | |||
| Nishi-Hiranai | 西平内 | 3.8 | 98.3 | |||
| Asamushi-Onsen | 浅虫温泉 | 6.4 | 104.7 | Aomori | ||
| Nonai | 野内 | 6.5 | 111.2 | |||
| Yadamae | 矢田前 | 1.5 | 112.7 | |||
| Koyanagi | 小柳 | 2.0 | 114.7 | |||
| Higashi-Aomori | 東青森 | 1.4 | 116.1 | |||
| Tsutsui | 筒井 | 1.4 | 117.5 | |||
| Aomori | 青森 | 4.4 | 121.9 | Ōu Main Line, Tsugaru-Kaikyō Line | ||
Rolling stock
- Aoimori 701 series 2-car EMUs x9
- Aoimori 703 series 2-car EMUs x2
The Aoimori Railway operates a fleet of 701 series 2-car electric multiple units (EMUs). One set was built from new in September 2002, while eight more were transferred from JR East.[3]
Two new two-car Aoimori 703 series EMUs were delivered in November 2013 and introduced from the start of the 15 March 2014 timetable revision.[3]
History
The Aoimori Railway Line was completed as the Metoki – Shiriuchi portion of the Nippon Railway on September 1, 1891. When the Nippon Railway was nationalized on November 1, 1906, it became part of the Japanese National Railways (JNR) system and was designated part of the Tōhoku Main Line on October 12, 1909. With the privatization and dissolution of JNR on April 1, 1987, the line came under the control of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). On December 1, 2002, with the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen, the portion of the Tōhoku Main Line located in Iwate Prefecture became the Iwate Ginga Line, and the portion in Aomori Prefecture from the Iwate border to Hachinohe Station became the Aoimori Railway Line.
With the opening of the Tōhoku Shinkansen extension to Shin-Aomori on 4 December 2010, the Tōhoku Main Line tracks between Hachinohe and Aomori were transferred to Aoimori Railway ownership.[4]
References
- Harris, Ken and Clarke, Jackie. Jane's World Railways 2008-2009. Jane's Information Group (2008). ISBN 0-7106-2861-7
- ↑ "「わ」の鉄道 青い森鉄道" [Aoimori Railway - A "Wa" Railway]. Japan Railfan Magazine (Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd.) 50 (595): p.24–29. November 2010.
- ↑ JTB Timetable (April 2014) p. 592
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Terada, Hirokazu (October 2014). 新幹線並行在来線 [Conventional railways running parallel with shinkansen lines]. Japan Railfan Magazine (in Japanese) (Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd.) 54 (642): p.71-71.
- ↑ "JR東日本 東北本線八戸―青森間の廃止を届出" [JR East announces discontinuation of Tohoku Line between Hachinohe and Aomori]. Tetsudo Hobidas (in Japanese). Japan: Neko Publishing. 27 November 2009. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Aoimori Railway. |