The is a

rubber-tyred metro A rubber-tyred metro or rubber-tired metro is a form of rapid transit system that uses a mix of road and rail technology. The vehicles have wheels with rubber tires that run on rolling pads inside guide bars for traction, as well as traditional ...

line in

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

, Japan. It is part of the

Sapporo Municipal Subway The is a mostly-underground rubber-tyred rapid transit system in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. Operated by the Sapporo City Transportation Bureau, it is the only subway system on the island of Hokkaido. Lines The system consists of three lines: ...

system. Its name literally means ''South-North Line'', and it runs from Asabu Station in Kita-ku to

Makomanai Station Makomanai Station (真駒内駅) is a rapid transit station in Minami-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. The station number is N16. It is the south terminus of the Namboku Line. The Makomanai Park is about 10 minutes by bus, or 20 minutes walking d ...

in Minami-ku. The Namboku Line color on maps is green, and its stations carry the letter "N" followed by a number.

Station list

* All stations are located in

History

* December 16, 1971: Kita-Nijūyo-Jō – Makomanai section opens; 1000 series trains introduced. * March 16, 1978: Kita-Nijūyo-Jō – Asabu section opens; all trains operated as 8-car sets. * October 1, 1978: 3000 series trains introduced. * October 14, 1994: Reien-Mae Station renamed Minami-Hiragishi Station. * September 1995: 5000 series trains introduced. * June 27, 1999: 1000/2000 series trains withdrawn. * August 18, 2008: Women-only cars introduced on trial basis (until September 12, 2008). * December 15, 2008: "Women and Children Comfort Car" introduced. * January 30, 2009:

SAPICA is a rechargeable contactless smart card ticketing system for public transport in Sapporo, Japan. Sapporo City Transportation Bureau (SCTB) introduced the system from January 30, 2009. The name of the card means "Sapporo's IC card". is also the ...

contactless smart card A contactless smart card is a contactless credential whose dimensions are credit-card size. Its embedded integrated circuits can store (and sometimes process) data and communicate with a terminal via NFC. Commonplace uses include transit tickets ...

introduced.

Future developments

Platform edge doors Platform screen doors (PSDs), also known as platform edge doors (PEDs), are used at some train, rapid transit and people mover stations to separate the platform from train tracks, as well as on some bus rapid transit, tram and light rail syste ...

are scheduled to be installed on all stations by 2014.

External links

Sapporo City Transportation Bureau
{{DEFAULTSORT:Namboku Line (Sapporo) Sapporo Municipal Subway Rail transport in Hokkaido 750 V DC railway electrification Railway lines opened in 1971 1971 establishments in Japan