The is a Japanese railway line operated by the

private railway A private railway is a railroad run by a private business entity (usually a corporation but not need be), as opposed to a railroad run by a public sector. Japan In Japan, , commonly simply ''private railway'', refers to a public transit railway o ...

company

Tobu Railway is a Japanese commuter railway and ''keiretsu'' holding company in the Greater Tokyo Area as well as an intercity and regional operator in the Kantō region. Excluding the Japan Railways Group companies, Tobu's rail system is the second longes ...

, extending from

Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the town of Miyashiro, Saitama, Japan, operated by the private railway operator Tōbu Railway. Lines The station is served by the Tōbu Skytree Line, and forms the starting point of the Tōbu S ...

in Saitama to Isesaki Station in

Gunma Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Gunma Prefecture has a population of 1,937,626 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 6,362 Square kilometre, km2 (2,456 Square mile, sq mi). Gunma P ...

. The Isesaki Line can refer to the entire section between

Asakusa is a district in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan. It is known as the location of the Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. There are several other temples in Asakusa, as well as various festivals, such as the . History The ...

- Isesaki and Oshiage - Hikifune, but from March 2012, the 41.0 km section south of Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen was branded as the

Tobu Skytree Line The is a section of the Tobu Isesaki line operated by the private railway company Tobu Railway, extending from Asakusa Station in Tokyo to Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen Station in Saitama Prefecture. Some trains from the line continue to the Tokyo Met ...

in conjunction with the opening of the

Tokyo Skytree is a broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo. It became the tallest structure in Japan in 2010(L) :*Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen − Ōta. Connection with Express. Three per hour, with one between Kuki and Tatebayashi. :*Ōta − Isesaki. One per hour per direction, conductorless. ; (SSE) :Between Asakusa and Tōbu-Dōbutsu Kōen, Kuki or Minami-Kurihashi on Nikkō Line. ; (SmE) :Early morning and late night. Down to Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen, Kuki or to Minami-Kurihashi on the Nikkō Line through from Chūō-Rinkan of Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line via Hanzōmon Line. 10 cars. ; (SE) :Between Asakusa and Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen, Tatebayashi or Ōta. ; (Ex) :From morning to night. Down to Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen, Kuki (nearly half to Minami-Kurihashi on the Nikkō Line), through from Chūō-Rinkan on the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line via Hanzōmon Line. 10 cars. ; (LE) :Stops not shown. Charged for seat reservation and rapid service. Mainly through to the Nikkō Line for the Nikko area named and . Some through to Isesaki from Asakusa, sole direct service named .

Stations

*O: Stop **1: To/from on the

section of the Isesaki Line. **2: To/from on

Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line Tokyu may refer to: * Tokyu Group, a group of companies centered on Tokyu Corporation ** Tokyu Corporation, a Japanese railway company, the largest member and parent company of the group ** Tokyu Car Corporation Tokyu may refer to: * Tokyu Group, ...

via

Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.4 ...

*For the section between Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen and Asakusa, see

Rolling stock

Current

Tobu 200 series The are electric multiple unit (EMU) train types operated in Japan on limited express services by the private railway operator Tobu Railway since 1991. The trains are used on ''Ryōmō'' services from Asakusa in Tokyo to Akagi and Kuzū. For ...

Tobu 500 series The , branded , is an electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by the private railway operator Tobu Railway on limited express services in Japan since 21 April 2017. 11 three-car sets (33 vehicles in total) have been built by Kawasaki ...

Tobu 10000 series The is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) commuter train type operated in Japan by the private railway operator Tobu Railway since 1983. First entering service in 1983 on the Tobu Tojo Line (1984 on the Tobu Isesaki Line), production continued ...

Tobu 50000 series The is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) commuter train type operated by the private railway operator Tobu Railway in Japan since March 2005, manufactured by Hitachi to its "A-train" concept. The trains represent the first use of aluminium bod ...

Tobu 50050 series The is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) commuter train type operated by the private railway operator Tobu Railway in Japan since March 2005, manufactured by Hitachi to its "A-train" concept. The trains represent the first use of aluminium body ...

* Tobu 70090 series (''

TH Liner The is a limited-stop " Home Liner"-style service to and from Kuki Station in Saitama on the Tobu Isesaki Line operated by the private railway operator Tobu Railway in Japan since June 2020. Service outline ''TH Liner'' services operate in ...

'') * Tokyu 2020 series *

Tokyu 5000 series The is an electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by the private railway operator Tokyu Corporation since 2002 on many of its commuter lines in the Tokyo area of Japan. Design First introduced in 2002, the design is based on the JR Ea ...

Tokyu 8500 series The is a commuter electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by the private railway operator Tokyu Corporation on the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line and Tokyu Oimachi Line in the Tokyo area of Japan since 1975 and the Jabodetabek area of Indones ...

* Tokyo Metro 18000 series * Tokyo Metro 8000 series *

Tokyo Metro 08 series The is an electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated on the Tokyo Metro Hanzōmon Line in Tokyo, Japan since 2003. Introduced into service on 7 January 2003, a total of six ten-car trainsets were manufactured by Nippon Sharyo between 2002 ...

File:Tobu-Series200 Ryomo.jpg, Tobu 200 series File:Tobu-railway-10609F-20090820.jpg, Tobu 10000 series File:Tobu-Series50000-51060F.jpg, Tobu 50050 series File:Tokyu-Series2020-2126F.jpg, Tokyu 2020 series File:Tokyu-Series5000-5116F.jpg, Tokyu 5000 series File:Tokyu-Series8500-8619F.jpg, Tokyu 8500 series File:東京メトロ半蔵門線8000系電車.jpg, Tokyo Metro 8000 series

Former

* Tobu 30000 series

History

The first section of the Isesaki Line was opened by the present company in 1899 between and utilising steam motive power. In 1902, Tobu extended the line south to have a maritime connection at present (then , later renamed Asakusa) in downtown Tokyo, and north to . The following year a further northern extension to (then on the south bank of

Tone River The is a river in the Kantō region of Japan. It is in length (the second longest in Japan after the Shinano) and has a drainage area of (the largest in Japan). It is nicknamed Bandō Tarō (); ''Bandō'' is an obsolete alias of the Kantō ...

) was opened. Further northward extension progressed, and in 1910 the line arrived at . In 1931, a bridge over the Sumida River was built and present Asakusa Station (then ) opened as part of the department store building, the entire line being completed. The Asakusa to Nishiarai section was double-tracked in 1912, and the rest of the line was double-tracked between 1920 and 1927, except for the Hanyu to Kawamata section, which was double-tracked when a second bridge was built over the Tonegawa in 1992. Electrification was begun in 1924 on the section of Asakusa and , and in 1927 completed as far as Isesaki. The distance of over 100 km was then one of the longest electrified railway lines together with the present

Kintetsu ''Kintetsu'' is the abbreviation of , or Kintetsu Railway, a Japanese railway corporation. It may also refer to: Companies * Kintetsu Group Holdings, the holding corporation of the Kintetsu Railway ** Kintetsu Bus, a bus company and a subsidiary ...

Osaka Line is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2.7 ...

and Yamada Lines. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the Tobu Lines had no connection to the

Yamanote Line The Yamanote Line ( ja, 山手線, Yamanote-sen) is a loop service in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It is one of Tokyo's busiest and most important lines, connecting most of Tokyo's major stations and urban c ...

or other major lines of the then

Japanese National Railways The abbreviated JNR or , was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987. Network Railways As of June 1, 1949, the date of establishment of JNR, it operated of narrow gauge () railways in all 46 pref ...

(JNR) to offer efficient transfers to central Tokyo. The sole connection was with the

Jōban Line The Jōban Line ( ja, 常磐線, ) is a railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line officially begins at Nippori Station in Arakawa, Tokyo before the line officially ends at Iwanuma Station in Iwanuma, ...

at Kitasenju, which offered poor access to central Tokyo. To solve the inefficiencies of transfers at Kitasenju and notoriously narrow Asakusa, in 1962, the

Hibiya Line The is a subway line in Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by Tokyo Metro. The line was named after the Hibiya area in Chiyoda's Yurakucho district, under which it passes. On maps, diagrams and signboards, the line is shown using the color silve ...

of the then , known as TRTA, present

Tokyo Metro The is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.84 million passengers, the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the two subway operators in the city; the other being the Toe ...

) was built, connecting at Kitasenju. Further growing traffic required Tobu to build a second through line to Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line in the 1990s. In 2003, the company built new tracks from Hikifune to connect at , officially an annex station of Tokyo Skytree. From the 3 March 2006, timetable revision, less than half of trains originated or terminated at Asakusa, with more trains operating through to Tokyo Metro subway lines. From 17 March 2012, the section south of Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen was rebranded as the

References

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

External links

Tobu Railway Isesaki Line information page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tobu Isesaki Line Isesaki Line Rail transport in Saitama Prefecture Rail transport in Gunma Prefecture Rail transport in Tochigi Prefecture Railway lines opened in 1899 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan 1899 establishments in Japan