The , also referred to as the Tama Monorail, is a

monorail A monorail (from "mono", meaning "one", and "rail") is a railway in which the track consists of a single rail or a beam. Colloquially, the term "monorail" is often used to describe any form of elevated rail or people mover. More accurately, ...

system in

Western Tokyo Western Tokyo, also known as the , or , in the Tokyo Metropolis consists of 30 ordinary municipalities (Cities of Japan, cities (市 shi), Towns of Japan, towns (町 machi) and one Villages of Japan, village (村 mura)), unlike the eastern part ...

. Operated by the Tokyo Tama Intercity Monorail Co., Ltd., the double tracked, 16.0 km monorail line carries passengers between the suburban cities of Higashiyamato and Tama via

Tachikawa file:Autumn colors in Showa memorial park.jpg, 250px, Showa Memorial Park is a Cities of Japan, city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 184,383 in 93,428 households, and a populat ...

, Hino, and

Hachiōji is a Cities of Japan, city located in the Western Tokyo, western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 561,344, and a population density of 3000 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography ...

in 36 minutes. , , and stations are the most important stations, enabling transfer at Tachikawa to

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is 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 ...

Chūō Main Line The , commonly called the Chūō Line, is one of the major trunk railway lines in Japan. It connects Tokyo and Nagoya, although it is the slowest direct railway connection between the two cities; the coastal Tōkaidō Main Line is slightly faste ...

and at Tama-Center to the

Odakyu Tama Line , commonly known as Odakyū, is a major railway company based in Tokyo, Japan, best known for its ''Romancecar'' series of limited express trains from Tokyo to Odawara, Enoshima, Tama New Town, and Hakone. The Odakyu Electric Railway Company fo ...

and

Keio Sagamihara Line The is a Japanese railway line operated by the private railway operator Keio Corporation, connecting Hashimoto Station in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture and Chōfu Station in Chōfu, Tokyo. Station list Rapid and Semi express services sto ...

Stations

All stations located in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. Most stations have an associated shape/image (as seen in the left-most column of the table below).

History

The line opened in two phases. The section from Kamikitadai to Tachikawa-Kita opened in November 1998 while the section south to Tama-Center opened in January 2000. Station numbering was introduced to all stations in February 2018.

Future plans

As of October 2022, there are plans to extend the route. One route is an extension north from the current terminus at Kamikitadai to Hakonegasaki Station on the Hachiko Line. The other two are southbound extensions from Tama-Center to Hachioji and Machida respectively.

Kamikitadai to Hakonegasaki

In 2016, a proposal was made to extend the line from the current northern terminus at

Kamikitadai Station is a monorail station operated by the Tokyo Tama Intercity Monorail Company in Higashiyamato, Tokyo, Japan. Lines Kamikitadai Station is a terminus of the 16.0 kilometer Tama Toshi Monorail Line. Station layout Kamikitadai Station is a raised ...

Hakonegasaki Station is a passenger railway station located in the town of Mizuho, Tokyo, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Lines Hakonegasaki Station is served by the Hachikō Line between and , with many services continuing to and from o ...

on the

Hachikō Line The Hachikō Line is a 92.0 km (57.2 mi) regional railway line owned and operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It is located within Tokyo, Saitama, and Gunma Prefectures in Japan. It connects Hachiōji Station in Hachiō ...

. The planned extension to Hakonegasaki had been considered since planning for the entire route began in 1981. The seven-station extension will be long and is projected to cost .

Tama-Center to Hachioji

A southward expansion of the monorail line to

Hachiōji Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the city of Hachiōji, Tokyo, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It opened on 11 August 1889.JR EasHachiōji Station informationRetrieved on 21 August 2008. Lines The ...

was also considered since the planning phase of the line in the 1980s. The expansion had also been considered to be run as a separate light rail transit line, but was ultimately abandoned in December 2016 citing topographical and technological constraints. As of 2016 the projected cost is .

Tama-Center to Machida

An extension from Tama-Center to Machida Station has also been considered since the planning phase of the line in the 1980s. As of January 2022, the exact route remains undecided. The most recent estimate determined that the construction would cost .

References

External links

* {{Rapid transit in Asia Monorails in Japan Railway lines in Tokyo Tama Toshi Monorail Western Tokyo Railway lines opened in 1998 Japanese third-sector railway lines Monorails