Kumamoto Electric Railway
| Kumamoto Electric Railway | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 A 6000 series and 03 series train | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Overview | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Operational | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Kumamoto Electric Railway | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Locale | Kumamoto Prefecture | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 15 August 1909 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Technical | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Line length | 13.1 km (8.1 mi) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrification | 600 V DC overhead catenary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating speed | 50 km/h (30 mph)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Kumamoto Electric Railway (熊本電気鉄道, Kumamoto Denki Tetsudō) is a public transport company in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is abbreviated as Kumamoto Dentetsu (熊本電鉄) or Kumaden (熊電). The company was founded in 1909. The company operates railway and bus lines.
For the tram (streetcar) system in Kumamoto, see Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau.
Lines
[edit]- Kikuchi Line (菊池線)
- Kami-Kumamoto — Kita-Kumamoto — Miyoshi: 10.8 km (6.7 mi)
- Fujisaki Line (藤崎線)
- Kita-Kumamoto — Fujisakigū-mae: 2.3 km (1.4 mi)
A short section of the Fujisaki Line shares its track with public road, like a tram line.
Routes & Operation
[edit]As is the case with many Japanese rail and tram companies, the actual routes operated differ from the officially designated lines[2]
Trains operate on two routes:
- Kikuchi Line or "Kami-Kumamoto Line":[3] Kami-Kumamoto — Kita-Kumamoto
- Fujisaki/Kikuchi Line or "Main Line":[4] Miyoshi — Kita-Kumamoto — Fujisakigū-mae
Services from all 3 termini (Kami-Kumamoto, Miyoshi and Fujisakigū-mae) meet at Kita-Kumamoto at the same times allowing seamless transfer between services. Routes operate every 30 minutes, but during am & pm peak periods the "Main Line" (Miyoshi — Kita-Kumamoto — Fujisakigū-mae) route operates every 15 minutes.
At Kami-Kumamoto, passengers can transfer to JR Kyushu Kagoshima Line trains and Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau tram (streetcar) Route B.
Rolling stock
[edit]All trains are 2-car sets acquired second-hand from other operators.
- 1000 series EMUs (former Shizuoka Railway 1000 series), 2 x 2-car sets, since April 2024
- 03 series EMUs (former Tokyo Metro 03 series ), 3 x 2-car sets, since April 2019[5]
- 01 series EMUs (former Tokyo Metro 01 series), 2 x 2-car sets, since March 2015[6]
- 6000 series EMUs (former Toei 6000 series), 5 x 2-car sets, since 1995. As of February 2024, only 1 x 2-car set (6111A + 6118A) is still in service.
-
Kumamoto Electric Railway 1000 series, February 2024 -
Kumamoto Electric Railway 03 series -
Kumamoto Electric Railway 01 series -
Kumamoto Electric Railway 6000 series
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Former Rolling Stock
[edit]- 200 series EMU (former Nankai Electric Railway 22000 series)
- 5000 series EMUs (former Tokyu 5000 series)
-
Kumamo Electric Railway 200 series -
Kumamoto Electric Railway 5000 series
History
[edit]The forerunner of the company, Kikuchi Tramway (菊池軌道), was established in on 15 August 1909, and opened the 914 mm (3 ft) gauge steam-hauled line from Ikeda Station (池田駅) (close to the present-day Kami-Kumamoto Station) to Sendanbatamachi Station (千反畑町駅) (present-day Fujisakigū-mae Station) on 1 October 1911.[1] On 27 August 1913, the line between Ikeda and Waifu Station (隈府駅) (later named Kikuchi) was opened.[1]
From 31 August 1923, the line was converted to 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) gauge and electrified at 600 V DC.[1]
The current section of the Kikuchi Line between Kita-Kumamoto and Kami-Kumamoto opened on 1 October 1950, resulting in two lines between those stations, the original via Fujisakigū-mae and the new line.[1] In June 1953 the original line from Kami-Kumamoto to Fujisakigū-mae closed.[1] The 13.5 km Miyoshi to Kikuchi section closed on 16 February 1986 due to falling patronage.[1]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]This article incorporates material from the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia.
- ^ a b c d e f g Terada, Hirokazu (19 January 2013). データブック日本の私鉄: 全国私鉄165社局掲載 データブック日本の私鉄 [Databook: Japan's Private Railways]. Japan: Neko Publishing. p. 186. ISBN 978-4-7770-1336-4.
- ^ "デジタル JR時刻表 Pro". 株式会社交通新聞社 (in Japanese). Kotsu Shimbunsha. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
- ^ "熊本電気鉄道 上熊本線 路線図・停車駅". レイルラボ(RailLab) (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 November 2024.
- ^ "熊本電気鉄道 熊本電気鉄道本線 路線図・停車駅". レイルラボ(RailLab) (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 November 2024.
- ^ 中古車両、熊本電鉄で「第二の人生」５車種すべて移籍組 東京メトロの３編成導入へ [Old rolling stock to spend new life, 5 different types already transferred, 3 Tokyo Metro trains to be introduced] (in Japanese). Japan: Nishinippon Shimbun. 15 January 2018. Archived from the original on 16 January 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
- ^ Kekke, Manabu (June 2015). 熊本電気鉄道01形 [Kumamoto Electric Railway 01 series]. Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 44, no. 374. Japan: Kotsu Shimbun. pp. 44–47.
External links
[edit]- Official website (in Japanese)
- Official website (in English)