The is a railway line in

Tochigi Prefecture is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Tochigi Prefecture has a population of 1,897,649 (1 June 2023) and has a geographic area of 6,408 Square kilometre, km2 (2,474 Square mile, sq mi ...

, Japan, owned and 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). It connects in the town of Takanezawa with in

Nasukarasuyama file:Tochigi Ryumon-Waterfall.jpg, Ryumon Falls is a Cities of Japan, city located in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 25,783 in 10,509 households, and a population density of 150 persons per km2. The total ar ...

Services

Trains run approximately once every hour, traveling the entire length of the line. Some trains travel through onto the

Utsunomiya Line The Utsunomiya Line () is the name given to a section of the Tōhoku Main Line between Tokyo Station in Tokyo and Kuroiso Station in Nasushiobara, Tochigi, Japan. It is part of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) network. Services Serv ...

( Tohoku Main Line) to

Utsunomiya Station is a railway station in the city of Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The station also is a freight depot for the Japan Freight Railway Company (JR Freight). Utsunomiya Station#Utsuno ...

Stations

Rolling stock

EV-E301 series The is a two-car battery electric multiple unit (BEMU) train type operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) on the Karasuyama Line and Tohoku Main Line since 15 March 2014. The train goes by the nickname . Overview Developed from the e ...

BEMU (since 15 March 2014) From the start of the revised timetable on 15 March 2014, a new

two-car

battery electric multiple unit A battery electric multiple unit (BEMU), battery electric railcar or accumulator railcar is an electrically driven multiple unit or railcar whose energy can be supplied from rechargeable batteries driving the traction motors. Prime advantages of ...

(BEMU) was introduced on the Karasuyama Line and Tohoku Main Line between Utsunomiya and Karasuyama. Developed from the experimental " Smart Denchi-kun" battery electric railcar also tested on this line since 2012, the EV-E301 series train is recharged at a special recharging facility built at

Karasuyama Station is a railway station in the city of Nasukarasuyama, Tochigi, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Lines Karasuyama Station forms the terminus of the Karasuyama Line, a 20.4 km branch line from . Station layout The s ...

, and operates on battery power over the non-electrified Karasuyama Line tracks. All of the remaining

KiHa 40 series The is a diesel multiple unit (DMU) train type introduced by Japanese National Railways (JNR) in 1977 and operated by all Japan Railways Group companies on suburban and rural services in Japan. Since 2017, the train type has seen use by other ...

diesel trains used on the line were withdrawn on 3 March 2017, and replaced with EV-E301 series battery electric units from the start of the revised timetable on 4 March 2017. File:JR East EV-E300-1 V1 ACCUM Demonstration.jpg, EV-E301 series BEMU set

Former rolling stock

DMUs (until 3 March 2017) File:Kiha40-1003 20110102.jpg, A KiHa 40-1000 series DMU in January 2011

History

The line opened on 15 April 1923. With the privatization of

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 ...

(JNR) on 1 April 1987, the line came under the control of JR East. ''Wanman''

driver only operation One-person operation (OPO), also known as driver-only operation (DOO), one-man operation (OMO), single person train operation (SPTO), or one-person train operation (OPTO), similarly to driver-controlled operation, is operation of a train, bus, ...

commenced on the line on 10 March 1990, using KiHa 40 series DMUs.

References

External links

JR East Karasuyama Line information
{{East Japan Railway Company Lines Rail transport in Tochigi Prefecture Lines of East Japan Railway Company 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan Railway lines opened in 1923 1923 establishments in Japan