Ōme Line

Ōme Line
Hatonosu Station
Overview
Native name	青梅線
Type	Heavy rail
Locale	Tokyo
Termini	Tachikawa Okutama
Stations	25
Operation
Opened	1894
Owner	JR East
Operator(s)	JR East, JR Freight
Technical
Line length	37.2 km (23.1 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	1,500 V DC overhead catenary
Route map

The Ōme Line (青梅線, Ōme-sen) is a railway line operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in western Tokyo, Japan. It links Tachikawa and the Chūō Line with the town of Okutama. Many Chūō Line trains operate via the Ōme Line to Ōme Station, providing non-stop service to Tokyo Station.

Services

Services on the Ōme Line are formed of E233 series trains. Trains from Tachikawa to Ōme typically operate as a 10-car trains (sometimes 4- and 6-car trains coupled together). At Ōme, trains uncouple, with the 4-car set going in the direction of Oku-Tama, and the 6-car set heading back to Tachikawa.

The Ōme Line, at times, runs along the Chūō Rapid, Itsukaichi, and Hachikō lines. Supplemental trains during the peak season may also run along the Nambu Line. Trains that operate only on the Ōme Line have an "Ōme-Itsukaichi Line" sticker on the front.

A Shinjuku-bound Holiday Rapid Okutama (E233 series EMU) at Haijima Station

Holiday Rapid Okutama and Holiday Rapid Akigawa services run on weekends from Shinjuku (and sometimes from Chiba; some Shinjuku-bound services are extended to Tokyo). They are paired together until they reach Haijima. The Okutama stops at Tachikawa, Nishi-Tachikawa, Haijima, Fussa, Ōme, Mitake, and Okutama; the Akigawa splits off from the Ōme Line at Haijima and runs on the Itsukaichi Line tracks to Musashi-Itsukaichi, stopping at every station.

Station list

• All stations are located in Tokyo.
• Local, rapid, and special rapid trains stop at all stations.
• Trains can pass one another at stations marked "∥", "◇", "∨", and "∧". They cannot pass at stations marked "｜".

History

No. 1 Hikawa tunnel on the Ogouchi dam line (now Mizune Freight Line)

No. 1 Mizune bridge on the Ogouchi dam line (now Mizune Freight Line)

The section between Tachikawa and Ōme was opened in 1894 by the Ōme Railway as a 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) gauge line, extended 2 km as a freight-only section to Hinatawada the following year. Passenger services were extended to Hinatawada in 1898, and the line was converted to 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) in 1908. A further freight-only section opened to Miyanohira in 1914, and to Futamatao in 1920. Passenger services were extended to Miyanohira in 1923, the same year the entire line was electrified at 1,200 V DC. The line was further extended to Mitake in 1929, when the company changed its name to the Ōme Electric Railway Co. and the voltage raised to 1,500 V DC in 1930. Passenger services were extended to Mitake in 1935.

The company was nationalized on 1 April 1944, the same year that the Tachikawa to Nagakami section was double-tracked.

The Okutama Electric Railway was constructing a line from Mitake to Hikawa (now Okutama) when it was nationalised, and the line opened on 1 July 1944, creating the present-day Ōme Line.

The Nagakami to Hajima section was double-tracked in 1946, and direct services to Tokyo commenced in 1949. The Hajima to Higashi-Ōme section was double-tracked between 1961 and 1962, CTC signalling was commissioned in 1971, and freight services ceased in 1998.

Former connecting lines

• Okutama Station: The Tokyo Waterworks Bureau operated a 7 km line to the Ogouchi dam during its construction between 1952 and 1957. It featured 23 tunnels and 23 bridges. In 1963 it was transferred to the Seibu Railway, which transferred it to the Okutama Limestone Quarrying Co. in 1978, and although the line is now known as the Mizune Freight Line, it has been out of service for some time.

Future developments

In February 2015, JR East announced plans to introduce Green (first class) cars on Chuo Line (Rapid) and through-running Ome Line services from fiscal 2020. This will involve adding two bilevel Green cars to 10-car E233 series EMU sets, forming 12-car sets. Work will be involved in lengthening station platforms and depot facilities to handle the longer trains.^[1]

References

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

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ōme Line.

• Stations of the Ōme Line (JR East) (in Japanese)