The is a 16.1 km

railway line Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term ''railroad'' and the international term ''railway'' (used by the International Union of Railways and English-speaking countries outside the United Sta ...

owned by the third-sector company

Heisei Chikuhō Railway The is a third-sector operator of four railway lines in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The railway's nickname is ''Heichiku.'' Principal investors Fukuoka Prefecture holds 27.5% of the stock in the railway. The cities of Tagawa, Nōgata, and Y ...

. The line runs north from Tagawa to Nōgata, all within

Fukuoka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders Saga Prefecture to the southwest, Kumamo ...

History

The line was first built by the Chikuhō Kōgyō Railway, later renamed , as a branch line of the Chikuhō Main Line. Used to transport coal from the Chikuhō coal mine, the line had two stations:

Nōgata Station is a railway station on the Chikuhō Main Line operated by JR Kyushu in Nōgata, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The station also hosts the northern terminus of the Heisei Chikuho Railway Ita Line. Lines The station is served by the Chikuhō Main ...

and Kanada Station. The entire Chikuhō Railway system was merged in 1897 with

Kyushu Railway was a company that built and operated railways in Kyushu, one of four main islands of Japan. Most of its lines came under the control of Japanese Government Railways following nationalization in 1907, and many are now operated by Kyushu Railway C ...

, where the line was extended to Ita Station (now

Tagawa-Ita Station is a railway station in Tagawa, Fukuoka, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) and Heisei Chikuhō Railway. On 1 April 2009, discount shop chain MrMax acquired naming rights to the Heisei Chikuhō part of the station. Therefor ...

) in 1899. Kyushu Railway was

nationalized Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to priv ...

in 1907 and was merged into

Japanese Government Railway The Japanese Government Railways (JGR) was the national railway system directly operated by the Japanese Ministry of Railways ( ja, 鉄道省, Tetsudō-shō, ) until 1949. It was a predecessor of Japanese National Railways and the later Japan Rai ...

. Even though the Ita Line was widened to a

double-track railway A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track. Overview In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most lin ...

in 1911, ridership suffered with the decline of the Chikuhō coal mine. Therefore,

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan and the JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Stra ...

, the successor of

privatized Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...

and transferred the Ita Line,

Itoda Line The is a 6.8 km railway line owned by the Heisei Chikuhō Railway. The line runs north from Tagawa to Kanada Station, all within Fukuoka Prefecture. History The Itoda Line was built in two parts. The first part was built in 1897 as a br ...

, and Tagawa Line to the newly founded Heisei Chikuhō Railway. Even after privatization, the

Japan Freight Railway Company , or , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It provides transportation of cargo nationwide throughout Japan. Its headquarters are in Shibuya, Tokyo near Shinjuku Station. The Japan Railways Group was fou ...

still ran trains from Kanada north to Mojiko Station in

Kitakyushu is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fukuoka. It is one of ...

, transporting cement from a Mitsui Tankō plant near Kanada Station. This service ceased with the plant's closure in March 2004.

Operations

The line is not

electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...

and is single-tracked for the entire line. Some services continue past Kanada Station on the

Tagawa-Gotōji Station is a railway station in Tagawa, Fukuoka, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) and Heisei Chikuho Railway. Lines Tagawa-Gotōji Station is served by the Hitahikosan Line, Gotōji Line and Heisei Chikuho Railway Itoda Line. Adja ...

Stations

All stations are within

References

{{Specified local lines, state=collapsed Railway lines in Japan Rail transport in Fukuoka Prefecture Railway lines opened in 1893 Japanese third-sector railway lines