is a 10.8 km

railway line Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...

owned by the

Kumamoto Electric Railway The is a public transport company in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is abbreviated as or . The company was founded in 1909. The company operates railway and bus lines. Lines * Kikuchi Line (菊池線) ** Kami-Kumamoto — Kita-Kumamoto ...

, serving

Kumamoto City is the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a population of 1,461,000, ...

and Kōshi,

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The line runs northward from

Kami-Kumamoto Station is a railway station in Nishi-ku, Kumamoto, Japan. It is on the Kagoshima Main Line of JR Kyushu and the Kikuchi Line (Kumaden), Kikuchi Line of Kumamoto Electric Railway. In front of the station is a tram stop of the tram operated by Kumamoto C ...

on the

Kagoshima Main Line The is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) between Mojiko Station, Mojikō in Kitakyushu, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu. Until March 13, 2004, it ...

, operated by

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan. It formerly operated the Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait be ...

, terminating at Miyoshi Station. Previously, the line ran as far as

Kikuchi, Kumamoto 290px, Tengu fall in the Kikuchi River 290px, Kikuchi Castle ruins 290px, Rice fields in Kikuchi is a city located in Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan.Deal, William E. (2005) ''Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Jap ...

, an

onsen In Japan, are hot springs and the bathing facilities and Ryokan (inn), traditional inns around them. There are approximately 25,000 hot spring sources throughout Japan, and approximately 3,000 ''onsen'' establishments use naturally hot water ...

resort town. However, ticket sales were replaced with road traffic on Japan National Route 387, and the section between Miyoshi and Kikuchi ceased operations on February 16, 1986.

Operations

The line is

electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. In the context of history of technology and economic development, electrification refe ...

with

overhead lines An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, Electric multiple unit, electric multiple units, trolleybuses or trams. The generic term used by the International Union ...

and is single-tracked for the entire line. Passing loops are located at

Horikawa Station is a passenger railway station located in the Kita-ku ward of the city of Kumamoto, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by the private transportation company Kumamoto Electric Railway. Lines The station is served by the Kikuchi Line ...

and Kuroishi Station.

Kita-Kumamoto Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the Kita-ku, Kumamoto, Kita-ku ward of the city of Kumamoto, Kumamoto, Kumamoto, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by the private transportation company Kumamoto Electric Railway. ...

has a passing loop for trains continuing on the

Fujisaki Line The is a 2.3 km railway line owned by the Kumamoto Electric Railway, serving Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. The line branches southward from Kita-Kumamoto Station to Fujisakigū-mae Station. Previously, this line extended to Kami-Ku ...

Two types of passenger services run on the line. The first runs between

and

, while the second runs between

Fujisakigū-mae Station is a passenger railway station located in the Kita-ku ward of the city of Kumamoto, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by the private transportation company Kumamoto Electric Railway. Lines The station is the terminus of the Fujis ...

on the Fujisaki Line to Miyoshi Station, running through Kita-Kumamoto. Both types of services stop at every station. Busses operated by the Kumamoto Electric Railway connect Miyoshi with Kikuchi along the abolished track.

Stations

Current stations

Terminated stations

References

{{Kumamoto Electric Railway Kikuchi Line Kumamoto Electric Railway Kikuchi Line Railway lines in Japan Rail transport in Kumamoto Prefecture Railway lines opened in 1913