The Narita Line () is the name for a combination of three railway lines located in

Chiba Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama ...

, Japan, operated by the

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). The main line connects Sakura Station and Matsugishi Station (as an alternate route to the

Sōbu Main Line The is a Japanese railway line operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Japan. It connects Tokyo with the east coast of Chiba Prefecture, passing through the cities of Funabashi, Chiba, and Chōshi. Its name derives from the ...

), and is sometimes referred to as the Samatsu Line (). A branch line from Abiko Station to Narita Station is often called the Abiko Line (), and a second branch, known as the Airport Line () connects Narita to

Narita Airport Terminal 1 Station Narita Airport Terminal 1 (Narita Airport) Station () is an underground airport rail link station located beneath Terminal 1 of Narita International Airport in Narita, Chiba, Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the ...

. The first two lines are owned and operated by JR East; the Airport Line is owned by a separate company, Narita Airport Rapid Railway, which allows JR East and Keisei Railway to use the line for passenger services.

Stations

Main line

Legend: * ● : All trains stop * , : All trains pass All stations are located in

. Note: Commuter Rapid service was discontinued on 12 March 2022.

Abiko branch line

All stations are in Chiba Prefecture.

Airport branch line

All stations are in Narita, Chiba.

Services

Main line and Airport branch line

'' Narita Express'' trains travel on the Narita Line but stop only at Narita Airport Terminal 2·3 and Narita Airport Terminal 1 stations, except during morning and evening rush hours when some trains stop at Narita Station. Rapid commuter trains run between Tokyo and Narita Airport Terminal 1, stopping at all stations between Tsuga and Narita Airport Terminal 1.

Abiko branch line

All services on the Abiko branch line are local trains stopping at all stations. Some trains travel through onto the

Jōban Line The is a railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line officially begins at Nippori Station in Arakawa, Tokyo before the line officially ends at Iwanuma Station in Iwanuma, Miyagi. However, following ...

(Rapid) to and .

Rolling stock

Local service * E131 series EMUs (since 13 March 2021, on Kashima Line through services) * 209-2000/2100 series EMUs Abiko Branch Line, Jōban Line through service * E231 series EMUs Sōbu Line (Rapid) through service * E235-1000 series EMUs ''Narita Express'' * E259 series EMUs File:Series209-2100-C617.jpg, A 209-2100 series EMU in March 2021 File:Series-E231-139 Yokosuka-Wrapping.jpg, An E231 series EMU in May 2021 File:JRE Series-E235-1000 J12.jpg, An E235-1000 series EMU in June 2022 File:E257-500.JPG, An E257-500 series EMU in November 2006 File:Series-E259-NE014 NEX.jpg, An E259 series EMU in May 2021

Past

E217 series The was a suburban electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in the Kantō region of Japan from 1994 to 2025. Design Introduced in 1994 to replace the 113 series EMUs running on the Sōbu Line (R ...

EMUs (until March 2025) * 103 series EMUs (Abiko branch line services until March 2006) * 113 series EMUs (until September 2011) * 183 series EMUs (''Ayame'' limited express services) * 211-3000 series EMUs (local services since 21 October 2006 until March 2013) * 253 series EMUs (''Narita Express'' limited express services until June 2010) * E257-500 series (''Ayame'' limited express services) File:Narita 103 at Narita 20030117.JPG, A 103 series EMU in January 2003 File:JRE 113-NaritaLine.jpg, A 113 series EMU in May 2010 File:183 Ayame Kinshicho 20051117.JPG, A 183 series EMU on an ''Ayame'' service in November 2005 File:253 series Ne202 NEX 19 Ikebukuro 20030822.jpg, A 253 series EMU on a ''Narita Express'' service in August 2003 File:JRE 211 Sobu Line.jpg, 211-3000 series EMU, May 2010 File:Series-E217-Y45.jpg, An E217 series EMU in March 2021

History

The Sakura - Narita - Namegawa section of the line was opened on 19 January 1897, by Sobu Railway, extended to Sawara the following year. The Narita to Abiko branch opened in 1901. The company was nationalised in 1920, and the Sawara to Matsugishi section opened between 1931 and 1933. The Sakura to Narita section was electrified (at 1,500 V DC overhead) in 1968. The Abiko branch was electrified from 1 October 1973. The Narita to Matsugishi section was electrified in 1974, and freight services ceased between 1984 and 1986. The Sakura to Narita section was double-tracked in 1986, and the Airport branch opened in 1991 as an electrified, CTC-signalled line.

Accidents

In the early hours of 10 March 2011, a day before

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami On 11 March 2011, at 14:46:24 Japan Standard Time, JST (05:46:24 UTC), a 9.0–9.1 Submarine earthquake, undersea megathrust earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region. It lasted approx ...

occurred, a freight train carrying ethylene oxide derailed and overturned on the Narita Line near Namegawa Station.

References

External links

Narita Line station numbering
{{authority control Lines of East Japan Railway Company Railway lines in Chiba Prefecture Airport rail links in Japan 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan Railway lines opened in 1897 1897 establishments in Japan Narita International Airport