The , commonly called , is a

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 ...

ese,

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with Minimum railw ...

industrial railway An industrial railway is a type of railway (usually private) that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics, or military site. In regions of the world influenced by British r ...

line in Tateyama,

Toyama Toyama may refer to: Places * Toyama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan located in the Hokuriku region on the main Honshu island * Toyama (city), the capital city of Toyama Prefecture * Toyama Station, the main station of Toyama, Toyama * Toyama Sta ...

. It is operated by the Tateyama Mountain Area Sabō Office, which belongs to the Hokuriku Regional Development Bureau of the

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT; ) is a cabinet-level division of the government of South Korea. Its headquarters is in the Sejong Government Office in Sejong City. Previously the agency was headquartered in the 4th buil ...

Overview

The line transports materials and workers for the construction/conservation of erosion control facilities of

Jōganji River The is a river in Toyama Prefecture, Japan, that flows through the city of Toyama as well as the town of Tateyama. The river was previously referred to as the Nii River (新川 ''Nii-kawa''). Route The river originates in the Tateyama Mountains ...

, such as dams. Unlike ordinary railways in Japan, the line is not regulated by the Railway Business Law nor the Tram Law, but by the Industrial Safety and Health Law. It means the line is not a public transportation, but solely a construction facility. However, the line is well known among

railfan A railfan, train fan, rail buff or train buff (American English), railway enthusiast, railway buff, anorak (British English), gunzel (Australian English), trainspotter (British English) or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally in ...

s. This is one of few Japanese railways, or possibly the only surviving one, to use narrow gauge track. Also, it is one of the lines with the largest number of railway zig zags in the world. Because of its historical significance, the line is

registered Registered may refer to: * Registered mail, letters, packets or other postal documents considered valuable and in need of a chain of custody * Registered trademark symbol, symbol ® that provides notice that the preceding is a trademark or service ...

as a Monument of Japan.

History

, flowing from the Tateyama Mountains to the

Bay, was known as a river with frequent

floods A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

and debris flows. In 1926, the

Home Ministry An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a Ministry (government department), government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law e ...

started to construct erosion control facilities for the river, including the railway line. The narrow gauge railway line between Senjugahara and Kanbadaira opened in 1929. A

funicular A funicular ( ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep grade (slope), slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to ...

was built between Kanbadaira and Mizutani in 1930, and a railway between Mizutani and Shiroiwa in the next year. The rail system stopped its operation during 1944 and 1948, because of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During that period the funicular section collapsed and an

aerial lift An aerial lift, also known as a cable car or ropeway, is a means of cable transport in which ''cabins'', ''cars'', ''Gondola lift, gondolas'', or Chairlift, open chairs are hauled above the ground by means of one or more Wire rope, cables. Aeria ...

for the same section was built in 1951. In 1965, the same section was replaced by a normal railway, with 18 zig zags in a row. The whole route between Senjugahara and Shiroishi became a single railway line. The section between Mizutani and Shiroishi was later abandoned, and the line now operates between Senjugahara and Mizutani. During 1998 and 2007, the line was renovated with newer routes (tunnels), reducing railway zig zags.

Basic data

*Distance: * *Rails: 15 kg/m *Maximum speed: 18 km/h (uphill), 15 km/h (downhill) *Vertical interval: *Liaison offices: 6 *Double-track line: None *Electric supply: Not electrified *Average gradient: 3.5 % *Maximum gradient: 5.0 % *Tunnels: 12 *Bridges: 20 *Railway zig zags: 38, concentrated in 8 places **Until 2005, there were 42 railway zig zags concentrated in 9 places.

Liaison offices

*: Near Tateyama Station of

Toyama Chihō Railway The is a transportation company in Toyama, Toyama, Toyama, Toyama Prefecture, Japan. The company is commonly known as . This private company operates railway, tram, and bus services in the eastern part of the prefecture. It also operates as ...

Tateyama Line and

Tateyama Cable Car The is a Japanese funicular line of in Tateyama, Toyama, with its official name . The company also operates another funicular, Kurobe Cable Car with the same official name. The line is a part of Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route. It opened in 1954. ...

. Altitude . * * * * *: Altitude .

Rolling stock

*Diesel locomotives: 9 *Work trains: 4 *Passenger cars: 16 *Freight cars: 104

Services

Normally, a diesel locomotive tows 3 cars. The service is fairly frequent. The whole uphill trip takes 1 hour and 45 minutes. Since the area has heavy snowfalls in winter, the line closes from mid-November till June. In winter, some bridges and fences are removed to prevent their destruction by snow. The line is normally closed to the public. However, from 1984, a study tour of the erosion control started to use the line to transport its participants. Nonetheless, railfans still find it difficult to ride the line, since they have to book in advance and win a lottery to join the tour, which is often cancelled due to bad weather. In 2006, 16 tours were planned per day with 720 participants in total. Applications were 1.83 to 5.55 times more than the places available, and 69% of the planned tours were executed in reality.

References

External links

Tateyama Mountain Area Sabō Office
official website
Tateyama Mountain Area Sabō Office
official website
Tateyama Caldera Sabō Museum
official website, a museum which hosts the study tour. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tateyama Sabo Erosion Control Works Service Train Railway lines in Japan Rail transport in Toyama Prefecture 2 ft gauge railways in Japan Railway lines opened in 1929 Registered Monuments of Japan Tateyama, Toyama Railways with Zig Zags