The is a railway line in

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

, southern Japan, operated by the

Kyushu Railway Company 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 and the JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait ...

(JR Kyushu). It connects the west and east coasts of the island. The line originates at

Kumamoto Station is the main railway terminal of the city of Kumamoto, Japan. It is located in Nishi-ku, Kumamoto, and is operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). In front of the station is a tram stop of the tram operated by Kumamoto City Transportation ...

Kumamoto 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 ends at terminal of

Ōita Station is a railway station located in Ōita, Ōita Prefecture, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). The station opened on November 1, 1911. It has since undergone renovation, reopening in 2012 — the 'main' area of the station is ...

in Ōita.

Data

Gauge Gauge ( or ) 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, es ...

: *Length: 148.0 km *Stations: 37 (including terminals) *Track:

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Electrification 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. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...

: **Kumamoto - Higo Ōzu: 20 kV AC (60 Hz) **Higo Ōzu - Ōita: None *Maximum service speed: 95 km/h (59 mph)

Stations

•: Stops, , : Passes through

History

Construction of the line commenced from both Oita and Kumamoto in 1914, with connection being achieved with the opening of the Miyaji - Tamarai section in 1928. Steam locomotives were withdrawn from the line in 1973, and CTC signalling was commissioned on the entire line in 1983. The 22.5 km Kumamoto - Higoozu section was electrified in 1999.

Damages by natural disasters

Derailed_train_on_Hohi_Main_Line_near_Akamizu

In 1990-91, the line was severed for a year by landslides caused by torrential rain, with a further eight-month period of disruption occurring in 1993-94. A three-month period of disruption occurred in 2004, and the line was severed from July 2012 until August 2013 due to further landslides induced by torrential rainfall. In 2016, the Kumamoto Earthquakes damage resulted in the closure of the section between Higo Ozu and Aso. The line has been restored since 8 August 2020.

Former connecting lines

* Minami Kumamoto Station: the 29 km Yūen Railway to Tomochi opened in sections between 1915 and 1932, and closed in 1964. * Kamikumamoto Station: the 22 km gauge Kumamoto Light Railway to Otsu opened 1907 and 1914, with a 2.4 km branch to Suizenji. Despite proposals to regauge the line to gauge and electrify it, the anticipated development of the area did not occur at an acceptable rate and the line was closed in 1921.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hohi Main Line Lines of Kyushu Railway Company 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan Railways with Zig Zags Railway lines opened in 1914 1914 establishments in Japan