is a railway station in the
Ebisu neighborhood of
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
's
Shibuya
is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in Tokyo, Japan. A major commercial center, Shibuya houses one of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shibuya Station.
As of January 1, 2024, Shibuya Ward has an estimated population of 230,60 ...
ward
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward
* Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
, operated by
East Japan Railway Company
The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...
(JR East) and the Tokyo subway operator
Tokyo Metro
The Tokyo Metro () is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the #Organization, Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the Tokyo subway, two s ...
. The station is named after
Yebisu Beer, which was once brewed in an adjacent brewery, and which is itself named for the Japanese deity
Ebisu.
Lines
Ebisu is served by the following lines:
*
East Japan Railway Company
The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...
(JR East)
**
Yamanote Line
The Yamanote Line () is a railway Circle route, 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 centres ...
**
Saikyō Line
The Saikyō Line () is a Japanese railway line operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Ōsaki Station in Shinagawa, Tokyo, and Ōmiya Station (Saitama), Ōmiya Station in Saitama Prefecture. The line's name is a portmant ...
**
Shōnan-Shinjuku Line
*
Tokyo Metro
The Tokyo Metro () is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the #Organization, Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the Tokyo subway, two s ...
**
Hibiya Line
JR East station
Platforms
The JR East station consists of two
island platform
An island platform (also center platform (American English) or centre platform (British English)) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway inte ...
s serving four tracks.
File:JR Ebisu Station Platform 1・2.jpg, Platforms 1 and 2
File:JR Ebisu Station Platform 3・4.jpg, Platforms 3 and 4
Station melody
The melody known as "
The Third Man Theme
"The Third Man Theme" (also written "3rd Man Theme" and known as "The Harry Lime Theme") is an instrumental written and performed by Anton Karas for the soundtrack to the 1949 film ''The Third Man''. Upon release the theme proved popular, spending ...
" (or as the "Ebisu Theme" in Japan) is played at the platforms just prior to train departures. This melody was used in Ebisu beer TV commercials. Most of the many of thousands of people who pass through the station each day probably do not realize that the song was made famous by the 1949
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...
film noir,
The Third Man
''The Third Man'' is a 1949 film noir directed by Carol Reed, written by Graham Greene, and starring Joseph Cotten as Holly Martins, Alida Valli as Anna Schmidt, Orson Welles as Harry Lime and Trevor Howard as Major Calloway. Set in post-Worl ...
, written by
Graham Greene
Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century.
Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a re ...
and featuring a very dark subject matter, the sale of fake penicillin in post-World War Vienna. The song, played on the zither by the previously unknown Austrian musician, Anton Karas, was a huge international hit in 1949 and 1950.
Tokyo Metro station
Platforms
The subway station has two
side platform
A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platforms, ...
s serving two tracks.
History
The station first opened in 1901 as a freight terminal for the neighboring
Yebisu Beer factory. Passenger trains began to stop at the station on 30 September 1906.
[JR East /info.aspx?StationCd=290 JR East Ebisu Station information](_blank)
Retrieved 4 March 2010. The Tokyo Tamagawa tram line was extended to the station in 1927. In May 1945, the station building burned to the ground amid the
bombing of Tokyo
The was a series of air raids on Japan by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), primarily launched during the closing campaigns of the Pacific War, Pacific Theatre of World War II in 1944–1945, prior to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima ...
. The subway station opened on 25 March 1964
and the tram service was discontinued in 1967.
The Sapporo Brewery at Ebisu and its accompanying rail freight terminal were closed in 1982. The space was used for a "car train" service for several years before being redeveloped as the Ebisu Garden Place high-rise complex.
The
Saikyo Line was extended to Ebisu in 1996. Through service to the
Shonan-Shinjuku Line began in 2001, and to the
Rinkai Line
The is a railway line in Tokyo, Japan. It is the only line operated by the third-sector company Tokyo Waterfront Area Rapid Transit. It connects central Tokyo to the artificial islands of Aomi and Odaiba. The line is served by some trains on ...
in 2002. Between 1996 and 2002, Ebisu served as the southern passenger terminus of the Saikyo Line, with
Osaki Station being used as a turnaround point but not having passenger platforms connected to the line.
File:TokyoMetro 04p0864s.jpg, Old TRTA logo above station entrance, March 2004
The station facilities of the Hibiya Line were inherited by
Tokyo Metro
The Tokyo Metro () is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the #Organization, Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the Tokyo subway, two s ...
after the privatization of the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (TRTA) in 2004.
Chest-height
platform edge doors
Platform screen doors (PSDs), also known as platform edge doors (PEDs), are used at some train, rapid transit and people mover stations to separate the platform from train tracks, as well as on some bus rapid transit, tram and light rail sy ...
were introduced on the two Yamanote Line platforms from 26 June 2010, the first time that such doors were installed on a JR line other than the Shinkansen.
Station numbering
Station numbering is a sign system which assigns station codes consisting of a few letters and numbers to train stations. It aims to facilitate navigation for foreign travelers not familiar with the local language by using globally understood c ...
was introduced to the JR East platforms in 2016 with Ebisu being assigned station numbers JA09 for the Saikyo Line, JS18 for the Shonan-Shinjuku line, JY21 for the Yamanote Line. At the same time, JR East assigned the station a 3-letter code; Ebisu was assigned the code "EBS".
Morning ''
TH Liner'' services terminating at this station commenced on 6 June 2020.
Passenger statistics
In fiscal 2019, the JR East station was used by 145,805 passengers daily (boarding passengers only), making it the 20th-busiest station operated by JR East.
In fiscal 2019, the Tokyo Metro station was used by an average of 117,796 passengers per day (exiting and entering passengers), making it the 30th-busiest station operated by Tokyo Metro.
The daily passenger figures for each operator in previous years are as shown below.
* Note that JR East figures are for boarding passengers only.
See also
*
List of railway stations in Japan
References
External links
JR East Ebisu Station information
JR East Ebisu Station information
Tokyo Metro Ebisu Station information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ebisu
Saikyō Line
Buildings and structures in Shibuya
Shōnan-Shinjuku Line
Stations of East Japan Railway Company
Stations of Tokyo Metro
Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line
Yamanote Line
Railway stations in Japan opened in 1964