was a railway line operated by

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 pref ...

that connected

Sasayamaguchi Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Tamba-Sasayama, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). Lines Sasayamaguchi Station is served by the Fukuchiyama Line, and is located 58.4 kilometers fro ...

with

Fukusumi Station was a train station on the Sasayama Line in Fukusumi, Taki, Taki District, Hyogo, Japan. It closed in 1972. It is also a bus stop of Keihan Kyoto Kotsu and Shinki Green Bus. Line * Japan National Railway ** Sasayama Line Layout The station f ...

in present-day

Tamba-Sasayama , formerly known as , is a city in the central eastern part of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 40,050 in 17523 households and a population density of 110 persons per km2. The total area of the city is Geograph ...

, Hyōgo, Japan. The line was discontinued on 1 March 1972.種村直樹『ローカル線の旅』（1981年12月15日日本交通公社出版事業部発行）

Data

The single-track 1,067-mm gauge railway was operated between Sasayamaguchi and Fukusumi (17.6 km) with six stations including both termini. The line was not electrified.

History

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the railway line was constructed for transport of

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy u ...

and

quartz sand Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica ( silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical ...

, as a part of plan to connect

with

Sonobe Station 260px, Sonobe Station platforms, October 2010 is a passenger railway station located in then city of Nantan, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). It is a stop of limited express trains - " Kinosaki", "Hash ...

as bypass of

Sanyo Main Line , stylized as SANYO, is a Japanese electronics company and formerly a member of the ''Fortune'' Global 500 whose headquarters was located in Moriguchi, Osaka prefecture, Japan. Sanyo had over 230 subsidiaries and affiliates, and was founded ...

. In 1944, the line was open to traffic in the section between Sasayamaguchi Station and Fukusumi Station. At the same time, the Sasayama Railway which opened in 1913 was discontinued. In 1945, the end of the war led to the discontinuation of the construction of the remainder of the planned line to Sonobe Station. After that, despite contribution to locals, ridership was low and in 1968, the line was listed as one of 83 unprofitable lines for consideration of closure. Consequently on 1 March 1972, the line was closed. Besides, the bus route has been operated between Sasayamaguchi Station and Sonobe Station by

Japanese Government Railways The Japanese Government Railways (JGR) was the national railway system directly operated by the Japanese Ministry of Railways ( ja, 鉄道省, Tetsudō-shō, ) until 1949. It was a predecessor of Japanese National Railways and the later Japan Rai ...

and Japanese National Railways since 1934.7月11日園部-原山口間営業開始「鉄道省告示第310号」『官報』1934年7月7日��

National Diet Library The is the national library of Japan and among the largest libraries in the world. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the in researching matters of public policy. The library is similar in purpose and scope t ...

Digital Collection） This line was inherited to West JR Bus, but JR withdrew from the operation in 2002. The line was substituted by

Shinki Bus Shinki Bus Co., Ltd is a transport company based in Himeji, Japan, operating local bus services in Hyogo prefecture and other services mainly related to transport and tourism. History The company was founded on 10 March 1927 under the name of ...

that runs between

and

, and Keihan Kyoto Kotsu that runs between

and

Stations

File:Tamba-Hioki Station, platform.jpg, Tamba-Hioki Station File:Murakumo Station, name plate.jpg,

Murakumo Station may refer to: * Kusanagi is a legendary Japanese sword and one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan. It was originally called , but its name was later changed to the more popular ("Grass-Cutting Sword"). In folklore, the sword represents the ...

File:Fukusumi Station, name plate.jpg,

References

External links

{{commonscat, Sasayama Line
Tamba-Sasayama Internet TV
Railway lines opened in 1944 Railway lines closed in 1972 Railway lines in Japan Rail transport in Hyōgo Prefecture