is a

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 ...

operator in

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 ...

, Japan and the central firm of the that is involved in

transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is the sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholes ...

, real estate and other industries. The Keio railway network connects western suburbs of Tokyo (

Chōfu is a Cities of Japan, city in the western side of Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 238,087, and a population density of 11,000 per km2. the total area of the city is . Geography Chōfu is approximately ...

, Fuchū,

Hachiōji is a Cities of Japan, city located in the Western Tokyo, western portion of the Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 561,344, and a population density of 3,000 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . It is ...

, Hino, Inagi, Tama) and Sagamihara in

Kanagawa is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

with central Tokyo at

Shinjuku Station is a major railway station in Tokyo, Japan, that serves as the main connecting hub for rail traffic between central/eastern Tokyo (the Special wards of Tokyo, special wards) and Western Tokyo on the inter-city rail, commuter rail, and rapid tr ...

. The name is derived from taking one character each from the places through which the railway runs: and .

Network overview

Lines

The Keio network is based around the central Keiō Line, , 32 stations. The Keio Inokashira Line does not share track with the Keio Main Line. It intersects with the Keio Line at Meidaimae Station.

History

The company's earliest predecessor was the founded in 1905. In 1906 the company was reorganized as the , and in 1910 was renamed yet again to . It began operating its first stretch of

interurban The interurban (or radial railway in Canada) is a type of electric railway, with tram-like electric self-propelled railcars which run within and between cities or towns. The term "interurban" is usually used in North America, with other terms u ...

between Sasazuka and Chōfu in 1913. By 1923, Keiō had completed its main railway line (now the Keiō Line) between

Shinjuku , officially called Shinjuku City, is a special ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative center, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world ( Shinjuku Station) as well as the Tokyo Metropol ...

and

. Track along the Fuchū – Hachiōji section was originally laid in 1,067 mm

gauge Gauge ( ) may refer to: Measurement * Gauge (instrument), any of a variety of measuring instruments * Gauge (firearms) * Wire gauge, a measure of the size of a wire ** American wire gauge, a common measure of nonferrous wire diameter, especia ...

by the ; it was later changed to match the rest of the line's 1,372 mm gauge. The Inokashira Line began operating in 1933 as a completely separate company, . This company had also planned to link with Suzaki (now

Kōtō is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The ward refers to itself as Kōtō City in English. As of May 1, 2025, the ward has an estimated population of 543,730, and a population density of . The total ...

ward), though this never materialized. In 1940, Teito merged with the Odakyu Electric Railway, and in 1942 the combined companies were merged by government order into (now

Tokyu Corporation The , a contraction of and formerly until 2 September 2019, is a Japanese ''keiretsu'' or conglomerate headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo. While a multinational corporation, its main operation is , a wholly-owned subsidiary operating railways i ...

In 1947, the shareholders of Tokyu voted to spin off the Keio and Inokashira lines into a new company, . The Teito name was dropped in 1998 in favor of , though "KTR" placards and insignia can still be seen occasionally. The company's English name was changed to Keio Corporation on June 29, 2005.

Priority seats

Keiō was among the first railway companies to introduce priority seats on its trains. Priority seats are those reserved for the physically handicapped, elderly, pregnant women, and people with infants. These special seats, which were initially called "Silver seats" but renamed in 1993, were inaugurated on

Respect for the Aged Day is a public holiday in Japan celebrated annually to honor elderly citizens. It started in 1966 as a national holiday and was held on every September 15. Since 2003, Respect for the Aged Day is held on the third Monday of September due to the ...

on September 15, 1973.

Rolling stock

All Keio trains have longitudinal (commuter-style) seating.

gauge lines

* 7000 series (since 1984) * 8000 series (since 1992) * 9000 series (since 2001) * 5000 series (2nd generation) (since 2017) The first of a fleet of five new ten-car 5000 series EMUs was introduced on 29 September 2017, ahead of the start of new evening reserved-seat commuter services from Shinjuku in spring 2018. File:Keio7711F.jpg, 7000 series (8-car set) File:Keio Series8000.jpg, 8000 series (6-car set+4-car set) File:Keio 9000 series 9794F Kawasaki 2016-07-10 (28350676376).jpg, 9000 series (10-car set) File:Keio_5734_Extra_Semi_Express_20190202.jpg, 5000 series (II)

gauge lines

* 1000 series (2nd generation) (since 1996) File:Keio1703F.jpg, 1000 series (II)

Former rolling stock

gauge lines

* 5000 series (from 1963 until 1996) * 6000 series (from 1972 until 2011) File:Keio-5721.jpg, 5000 series (I) File:Keio6721tamazootrain.JPG, 6000 series (4-car set)

gauge lines

* 1000 series (from 1957 until 1984) * 3000 series (from 1962 until 2011) File:Ktr1000.JPG, 1000 series (I) File:Keio3729F.JPG, 3000 series (refurbished)

Related companies

Transport

Mitake Tozan Railway The is a Japanese transport company in Ōme, Tokyo. It belongs to the Keio Group. The company operates a funicular line and a chairlift, both in Mount Mitake (Tokyo), Mount Mitake. The company was founded in 1927. Funicular line The funicular li ...

* Keio Dentetsu Bus * Nishi Tokyo Bus

Taxi

Retail

* Keio Department Store * Keio Store

Other

* Keio Realty and Development * Keio Travel Agency * Keio Plaza Hotel * Keio Construction

References

External links

* {{Authority control Transport companies based in Tokyo Western Tokyo Companies in the Nikkei 225 Railway companies established in 1948 Japanese companies established in 1948 Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange