The is a railway line in Japan, which connects

Nagoya Station is a major railway station in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's, and one of the world's largest train stations by floor area (410,000 m2), and houses the headquarters of the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Much of this space ...

with JR Namba Station in

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

. It is jointly run by the

Central Japan Railway Company is the main railway company operating in the Chūbu (Nagoya) region of central Japan. It is officially abbreviated in English as JR Central and occasionally as JR Tokai (). The term ''Tōkai'' refers to the southern portion of Central Japan, ...

(JR Central) and

West Japan Railway Company , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, ...

(JR West), with the boundary between both companies being located at Kameyama Station in

Kameyama, Mie 260px, Seki-juku (Tōkaidō) is a city located in northern Mie Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 49,457 in 21,745 households and a population density of 260 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geograp ...

. The section from Kamo Station west to JR Namba Station is electrified and a part of the JR West "Urban Network", and is nicknamed the

Yamatoji Line The is the common name of the western portion of the Kansai Main Line in Japan. The line is owned and operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). It starts at Kamo Station (Kyoto), Kamo Station in Kyoto Prefecture and ends at JR Namba Stat ...

. The JR Central section from Nagoya to Kameyama is also electrified. Despite its name, for much of its length it is a very local line with mainly single track sections and no regular express services. The line was originally built in the 1890s by Kansai Railway (later under the

Japanese Government Railways The Japanese Government Railways (JGR) was the national rail transport, railway system directly operated by the until 1949. It was a predecessor of Japanese National Railways and the later Japan Railways Group. Name The English name "Japanese ...

and

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 pre ...

) as an alternate route from south Osaka to Nara and Nagoya, but competition from the Kintetsu lines and declining ridership forced the line to operationally become two electric suburban lines for Osaka and Nagoya respectively, with a less-used unelectrified rural section in the middle. Formerly a ''Kasuga''

express train An express train is a type of passenger train that makes few or no stops between its origin and destination stations, usually major destinations, providing faster service than local trains that stop at many or all of the stations along their ...

ran from to , but this service was discontinued in March 2006.

History

The Osaka Railway Co. opened the Minatomachi (now JR Namba) to Nara section between 1889 and 1892. The company merged with the Kansai Railway Co. in 1900. The Nara Railway Co. opened the Nara to Kizu section in 1896. It merged with the Kansai Railway Co. in 1905. The Kansai Railway Co. opened the Nagoya to Kizu section between 1890 and 1897, completing the line. The company was nationalised in 1907.

Duplication

The Minatomachi to Tennoji section was duplicated in 1903 and extended to Kashiwara in 1908. The Nara to Kizu section was duplicated in 1914, and the Kashiwara to Nara section between 1923 and 1926. In 1944 the Oji to Nara section was returned to single track and the materials recycled for the Japanese war effort. The section was re-duplicated in 1961. The Tomita to Kuwana section (except for the bridge over the Inabe River) was duplicated in 1973, and the Kuwana to Yatomi section between 1977 and 1980. The Yokkaichi to Tomidahama section was duplicated in 1993.

Electrification

The Minatomachi to Nara section was electrified in 1973, extended to Kizu in 1984, and to Kamo in 1988. The Nagoya - Hatta section was electrified in 1979, and extended to Kameyama in 1982.

Other matters of note

CTC signalling was commissioned between Kizu and Kameyama in 1983, and extended to Nagoya in 2001. In 1994 Minatomachi Station was renamed to coincide with the opening of the Kansai Airport Line to Kansai Airport. In 1996 Namba Station and the approach line were relocated underground to eliminate a number of level crossings. There are plans to extend the line from Namba to Osaka Station, with construction to begin within the next few years. (See Naniwasuji Line for information.)

Former connecting lines

* Kamo Station - In 1898 the Kansai Railway Co. opened an branch to a station beside the Daibutsu (Great Buddha), and in 1899 extended the line to Nara. Following the nationalisation of the Kansai Railway Co. in 1907, the line was closed. * Horyuji Station - The Kintetsu line to Hirahata operated between 1915 and 1945. * Kyuhoji Station - A branchline to serve the Taisho airfield opened in 1942, and was extended to Sugimotocho Station on the

Hanwa Line The is a commuter rail line in the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Metropolitan Area, owned and operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The 61.3 km (38.1 mi) line runs between Osaka and Wakayama, Japan and has a 1.7 km branchline ...

in 1952 to provide an electrified (1500 V DC) freight bypass between Wakayama and Nagoya. Passenger services were introduced in 1965 but ceased two years later, and the line closed in 2009 after being out of service for five years. * Tennoji Station - The Nankai line to Tengachaya, electrified at 1500 V DC, operated between 1901 and 1993.

Stations

JR Central (Nagoya–Kameyama)

*S: Trains stop * , : Trains pass *Local trains stop at all stations.

JR West (Kameyama–Kamo)

All stations between Kameyama and Kamo featured passing double tracks.

JR West (Kamo–JR Namba)

:''See the

article for the train types and stopping patterns on this section.'' ;Stations on this section * - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Rolling stock

JR Central

EMU

211 series The is a suburban electric multiple unit (EMU) train type introduced in 1985 by the Japanese National Railways (JNR). The trains are still being used by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). They were formerly used by the West Japan Railwa ...

* 313 series * 315 series (since 1 June 2023)

DMU

* KiHa 75 series * HC85 series * Ise Railway Ise type III

JR West

EMU

DMU

* KiHa 120 series

Former

* 101 series * 113 series * 165 series * 213-5000 series * 201 series * KiHa 17 * KiHa 35 * KiHa 50 * KiHa 51 * KiHa 55 * KiHa 58 * KiHa 65 * KiHa 81 * KiHa 82 * Ise Railway Ise I * Ise Railway Ise II * KiHa 85

In popular culture

The Kansai Main Line is the home course of Takumi Fujiwara in Densha de D, a parody of Initial D where the main characters race with trains instead of cars.

References

{{West Japan Railway Company Lines Rail transport in Aichi Prefecture Rail transport in Mie Prefecture Rail transport in Kyoto Prefecture Rail transport in Nara Prefecture Rail transport in Osaka Prefecture Lines of West Japan Railway Company Lines of Central Japan Railway Company Railway lines opened in 1889 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan 1500 V DC railway electrification 1889 establishments in Japan