The is the main line of Japanese

private railway A private railway is a railroad run by a private business entity (usually a corporation but not need be), as opposed to a railroad run by a public sector. Japan In Japan, , commonly simply ''private railway'', refers to a public transit railway o ...

operator Odakyu Electric Railway. It extends from

Shinjuku , officially called Shinjuku City, is a special ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative center, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world ( Shinjuku Station) as well as the Tokyo Metropol ...

in central

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

through the southwest suburbs to the city of

Odawara is a Cities of Japan, city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 188,482 and a population density of 1,700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Odawara lies in the Ashigara Plains, in ...

, the gateway to

Hakone is a List of towns in Japan, town in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the town had a population of 10,965, and total area of . Hakone is a notable spa town and a popular tourist destination due to its many onsen, hot springs being within view of ...

Kanagawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

. It is a busy commuter line and is also known for its " Romancecar" limited express services. From Yoyogi-Uehara Station some trains continue onto the

Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line The is a subway line owned and operated by Tokyo Metro in Tokyo, Japan. On average, the line carries 1,447,730 passengers daily (2017), the second highest of the Tokyo Metro network, behind the Tozai Line (1,642,378).East Japan Railway Company The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and 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 in ...

Joban Line.

Operation

Destinations are from

unless noted. English abbreviations are tentative for this article. ; :Collectively known as " Romancecar" services, there is an extra seat charge for limited express service. Daytime service trains bound for: ; on the Enoshima Line; on the Hakone Tozan Railway; and on the

Central Japan Railway Company is the main railway company operating in the Chūbu (Nagoya) region of central Japan. It is officially abbreviated in English as JR Central and occasionally as JR Tokai (). The term ''Tōkai'' refers to the southern portion of Central Japan, ...

Gotemba Line. ; (RE) :No extra charge. Services are for Odawara and on the Odakyu Enoshima Line all Rapid Express trains that are bound for terminates at and becomes Express. ; (E) :Services are for , as well as thrice-hourly service between Machida and Odawara. ; (SE) :Most services are for . All services run through on the Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Subway Line with some continuing on to the JR Joban Line. ; :Most services for ; others to , through to and the Tama and Hakone Tozan lines. Also service between to ; (CE) :All services operate in the weekday morning for Shinjuku from Karakida on the Odakyu Tama Line. ; (CS) :All services operate from Hon-Atsugi to the Chiyoda Line during weekday mornings.

Stations

Notes: * See the Romancecar article for information on Odakyu Romancecar limited express services. * Local trains stop at every station. Legend: * ● - all trains stop at this station; ■ - some trains stop at this station;｜- all trains pass; ○ - On Weekdays, Outbound for Isehara Evening Rush Hour only. * "CS" - Commuter Semi Express; "CE" - Commuter Express "SE" - Semi-Express; "E" - Express; "RE" - Rapid Express

History

The Odawara Express Railway Co. opened the entire line on 1 April 1927 in order to allow for the Emperor's family to travel on the line, though as duplication works were not completed until October that year, there was initial timetable and signalling issues. Although primarily intended as a passenger line, gravel began to be hauled in 1930. In 1942, the company was forcibly merged by the government with

Tokyu Corporation The , a contraction of and formerly until 2 September 2019, is a Japanese ''keiretsu'' or conglomerate headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo. While a multinational corporation, its main operation is , a wholly-owned subsidiary operating railways i ...

and the line was named the Tokyu Odawara Line. Tokyu was broken up in 1948 and the line was transferred to the newly founded Odakyu Electric Railway Co. Through operation to the Hakone Tozan Railway's

Hakone Tozan Line The is a mountain railway in Japan operated by Odakyu Hakone, an Odakyu Group company that also owns the Hakone Tozan Cable Car. The section of the line from Odawara Station to Hakone-Yumoto Station began operating in 1919, with the current t ...

began in 1950 once dual gauge track was commissioned (the Hakone Tozan Line is , the Odawara Line ). A connecting track was laid in 1955 to Matsuda Station on the Gotemba Line of the (then)

Japanese National Railways The , abbreviated JNR or , was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987. Network Railways As of June 1, 1949, the date of establishment of JNR, it operated of narrow gauge () railways in all 46 pre ...

, and limited express service through to the line started. To function as a bypass to central Tokyo, through service on the Eidan Subway (now

Tokyo Metro The Tokyo Metro () is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the #Organization, Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the Tokyo subway, two s ...

)

Chiyoda Line The is a subway line owned and operated by Tokyo Metro in Tokyo, Japan. On average, the line carries 1,447,730 passengers daily (2017), the second highest of the Tokyo Metro network, behind the Tozai Line (1,642,378).Yoyogi-Uehara. Increasing traffic volume since the 1970s led to plans being formed in 1985 for a track upgrading project on the Odawara Line, though land acquisition issues stalled major track expansion work until construction began in 2013; the project is being carried out between Yoyogi-Uehara and Mukōgaoka-Yūen, quadrupling the Odawara Line trackage and stacking the tracks underground, allowing for increased express services. Originally a

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide ...

was planned but this was changed to underground tracks, and work on the tunnel between Setagaya-Daita and Higashi-Kitazawa was completed in 2018.

Former connecting lines

* Setagaya-Daita Station: A gauge line electrified at 1,500 V DC operated to on the

Keio Inokashira Line The is a railway line operated by the Japanese private railway operator Keio Corporation in the western suburbs of Edo, connecting in Tokyo with in Musashino, Tokyo, Musashino City. It is not physically connected to the Keiō Line, Keio Main ...

between 1945 and 1952.

References

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

External links