The is a railway line in

Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectur ...

, Japan, operated by the private railway operator

Nagoya Railroad , referred to as , is a private railway company operating around Aichi Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture of Japan. Some of the more famous trains operated by Meitetsu include the ''Panorama Car'' and the '' Panorama Car Super'', both of which off ...

(Meitetsu) connecting Sanage Station in

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

and Hekinan Station in

Hekinan is a city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 72,864 in 29,139 households, and a population density of 1,986 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Geography Hekinan is located in south-central Aich ...

. It originally extended beyond Hekinan to Kira Yoshida, and beyond Sanage to Nishi Nakagane, with a proposed extension to Asuke substantially constructed but subsequently abandoned (see History section below). All trains on this line operate as Local trains and stop at every station. Some smaller stations have only a single platform and no passing loop.

Stations

History

The Mikawa Railway opened the Ōhama-minato (now Hekinan) to Kariya-shin (now Kariya) section in 1914, and extended the line to Chiryū (old, now Mikawa Chiryū) the following year, to Koromo (now Toyotashi) in 1920 and Sanage in 1924. In 1926, the Sanage to Hekinan section was electrified at 1,500 V DC, and in the same year the (now closed) Hekinan to Matsukijima section opened as an electrified section, as were all subsequent extensions. The (now closed) Sanage to Nishi Nakagane section opened between 1927 and 1928, and the Matsukijima - Mikawa Yoshida section also opened in the latter year. The company merged with Nagoya Railroad (Meitetsu) in June 1941, and the Mikawa Yoshida - Kira Yoshida section opened in 1943, connecting to the Gamagōri Line and the Nishio Line. Construction of an ~ extension from Nishi Nakagane to Asuke had commenced in the 1930s, with the roadbed completed when the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

commenced. Shortage of materials resulted in the rail line never being laid, and the proposed extension was formally abandoned in 1958, with the roadbed being converted to a public road, which is readily identifiable on aerial photographs. Freight services ceased in 1984, and as a result of declining patronage, the electrification on the Sanage - Nishi Nakagane section was decommissioned in 1985, and on the Hekinan to Kira Yoshida section in 1990, DMUs then providing the passenger service. Patronage continued to decline, and both sections were closed in 2004.

Double-tracking

The Chiryū to Shigehara section was double-tracked in 1976, the Kariya to Kariyashi section in 1980, and the Umetsubo to Toyotashi section in 1986. The doubling of the Toyotashi to Chiryū section is proposed, and some works have been undertaken, but funding issues with the local governments has stalled further work at present. The land has been acquired to double the Shigehara to Kariya section, but Meitetsu does not consider the patronage levels on this section justify duplication at this stage.

Former connecting lines

* Uwa Goromo Station: The Okazaki Electric Railway opened a line, electrified at 600 V DC, from Okazaki-Ida to Modachi in 1924. The line was proposed to continue to Matsudaira, but the company encountered financial difficulties and merged with the Mikawa Railway in 1927, which opened the Uwa Goromo to Mikawa Iwawaki section two years later, and converted the line to 1,500 V DC. In 1939, the Mikawa Iwawaki to Modachi section closed (Modachi Branch Line), and in 1941, the company merged with Meitetsu. The Okazaki-Ida to Daijuji section closed in 1962, and as a result of flood damage caused by torrential rain, the balance of the line closed in 1972. At Okazaki-Ida, there was a connection to a tram line that connected to the Tokaido Main Line at Okazaki station, the tramway also closing in 1962.

References

This article incorporates material from the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia.

External links