
The is a railway line in
Shiga Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the north ...
, Japan, 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 railwa ...
operator
Keihan Electric Railway
, known colloquially as the , , or simply , is a major Japanese private railway operator in Osaka, Kyoto, and Shiga Prefectures. The transit network includes seven lines; four main lines with heavy rolling stock, two interurban lines, and a funi ...
.
Stations
History
The Otsu Railway opened the Hamaotsu to Awazu section in 1913, electrified at 600 V DC.
The line was extended to Ishiyamadera (as single track) the following year.
The Hamaotsu to Miidera section opened in 1922 (dual track electrified), and in 1927 the company merged with a tourist boat operator to become the Biwako Railway & Steamship Co., which extended the line to Sakamoto the same year.
Keihan acquired the company in 1929 (and divested the steamship component immediately), connecting the line to its
Keishin line
The is an interurban railway line in Japan operated by the private railway operator Keihan Electric Railway. The 7.5 km line connects Misasagi Station in Kyoto and Biwako-Hamaōtsu Station in the neighbouring city of Ōtsu.
Train servic ...
in 1939.
The Awazu to Ishiyama section was double-tracked in 1943, but in 1945 the Sakamoto to Shigasato section was singled and the rails recycled for the Japanese war effort. The dual track was reinstated in 1947.
The voltage was increased to 1,500 V DC in conjunction with the voltage upgrade on the Keishin line.
References
This article incorporates material from the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia.
{{Reflist
Lines of Keihan Electric Railway
Ōtsu
Rail transport in Shiga Prefecture
Standard gauge railways in Japan
Railway lines opened in 1912
Street running
1912 establishments in Japan
1500 V DC railway electrification