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Suigun Line

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Suigun Line
KiHa E130 series DMU on the Suigun Line
Overview
Native name水郡線すいぐんせん
StatusIn operation
OwnerJR East
LocaleIbaraki, Fukushima prefectures
Termini
Stations45
Service
TypeHeavy rail
Services2
Operator(s)JR East
Rolling stockKiHa E130 series DMU
History
Opened1897
Technical
Line length137.5 km (85.4 mi) (main line), 9.5 km (5.9 mi) (Hitachi-Ōta branch)
Track length147.0 km (91.3 mi)
Number of tracksEntire line single tracked
CharacterRural
Track gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
ElectrificationNone
Operating speed95 km/h (59 mph)
Route map

The Suigun Line (水郡線すいぐんせん, Suigun-sen) is a Japanese railway line operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East), which connects Mito Station in Ibaraki Prefecture and Asaka-Nagamori Station in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. All trains on the line continue onto the Tōhoku Main Line to Kōriyama Station. The name of the line includes one kanji from each of the terminals, Mito (水戸みと) and Kōriyama (郡山こおりやま).

A branch line runs from Kami-Sugaya Station to Hitachi-Ōta Station in Ibaraki Prefecture.

History

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The Ota Railway Co. opened the Mito - Kami-Sugaya - Hitachi-Ota line between 1897 and 1899, but was declared bankrupt in 1901. The 15 banks owed money formed the Mito Railway Co. to acquire the line and continue its operation. That company opened the Kami-Sugaya - Hitachi-Omiya section in 1918, resulting in the Kami-Sugaya - Hitachi-Ota line becoming the branch.[1] The mainline was extended to Hitachi-Daigo in sections between 1922 and 1927, the year the company was nationalised.[1]

In 1929 JGR opened the Asaka-Nagamori - Yatagawa section, extending it to Kawahighashi in 1931.[1] The Hitachi-Daigo - Iwaki-Tanakura section was opened in stages between 1930 and 1932, and the Kawahigashi - Iwaki-Tanakura section opened in 1934, completing the line.[1]

Freight services ceased between 1982 and 1987. CTC signalling was commissioned on the entire line in 1983.

On 13 October 2019 as a result of heavy rainfall from Typhoon Hagibis, a bridge over the Kuji River was destroyed.[1] A substitute bus service operated between Saigane and Hitachi-Daiko station. JR East announced that the bridge repairs would take until November 2020 at the earliest, but the section did not reopen until 27 March 2021.[1]

Former connecting lines

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  • Iwaki-Tanakura station - A 23 km line to Shirakawa (on the Tohoku Main Line) was opened by the Shirotana Railway Co. in 1916. The line was nationalised in 1941, and closed in 1944. Plans to reopen the line in 1953 resulted in a decision to convert the line to a dedicated busway, which opened in 1957.
  • Hitachi-Ota station - An 11 km line to Omika (on the Joban Line) was opened by the Johoku Electric Railway in 1928/29. In 1944 the company merged with the Hitachi Electric Railway, and a 7 km line to Akukawa was opened in 1947. Both lines were electrified at 600 VDC from opening. CTC signalling was commissioned in 1969, and in 1971 the lines became the first electric railway in Japan converted to one-person operation. Both lines closed in 2005.

Basic data

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  • Track: Single track
  • Electrification: None
  • Signalling: Automatic Train Control (ATS-Sn)
  • CTC: Mito Operations Center

Services

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There is generally one train every one to two hours, but between Mito and Kami-Sugaya this increases to one to two trains per hour. Only 13 trains per day run the entire length of the line; most services are from Mito to Hitachi-Ōmiya, to Hitachi-Daigo, and to Hitachi-Ōta. Between Hitachi-Daigo and Kōriyama there are few trains, with a period of 2–3 hours during midday having no services whatsoever.

There are three additional trains between Hitachi-Daigo and Kōriyama (two to Kōriyama, one to Hitachi-Daigo), a single round-trip to Kōriyama from Iwaki-Ishikawa and back, and a single evening trip from Kōriyama to Iwaki-Tanakura that proceeds to Mito the following morning.

Other seasonal trains are added on certain days throughout the year.

Stations

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  • All stations on the main line and branch line are served by local trains only.

Main Line

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Station Japanese Distance (km) Transfers   Location
Between
stations
Total
Mito 水戸みと - 0.0 Jōban Line
Ōarai Kashima Line
Mito Ibaraki
Hitachi-Aoyagi 常陸青柳ひたちあおやぎ 1.9 1.9   Hitachinaka
Hitachi-Tsuda 常陸ひたち津田つだ 2.2 4.1  
Godai 後台ごだい 2.4 6.5   Naka
Shimo-Sugaya 下菅谷しもすげだに 1.3 7.8  
Naka-Sugaya ちゅう菅谷すがや 1.2 9.0  
Kami-Sugaya 上菅谷かみすがだに 1.1 10.1 Suigun Line (Hitachi-Ōta Branch)
Hitachi-Kōnosu 常陸ひたち鴻巣こうのす 3.3 13.4  
Urizura 瓜連うりづら 3.3 16.7  
Shizu せい 1.4 18.1  
Hitachi-Ōmiya 常陸ひたち大宮おおみや 5.3 23.4   Hitachiōmiya
Tamagawamura 玉川たまがわむら 5.4 28.8  
Nogamihara 野上原のがみはら 3.7 32.5  
Yamagatajuku 山方やまがた宿やど 2.7 35.2  
Naka-Funyū 中舟生なかふにゅう 2.7 37.9  
Shimo-Ogawa 下小川しもおがわ 2.8 40.7  
Saigane 西金さいがね 3.4 44.1   Daigo, Kuji District
Kami-Ogawa 上小川かみおがわ 3.2 47.3  
Fukuroda 袋田ふくろだ 4.5 51.8  
Hitachi-Daigo 常陸ひたち大子だいご 3.8 55.6  
Shimonomiya 下野しものみや 6.4 62.0  
Yamatsuriyama 矢祭山やまつりやま 4.9 66.9   Yamatsuri, Higashishirakawa District Fukushima
Higashidate 東館ひがしだて 4.1 71.0  
Minami-Ishii 南石井みなみいしい 2.8 73.8  
Iwaki-Ishii 磐城いわき石井いしい 1.1 74.9  
Iwaki-Hanawa 磐城塙いわきはなわ 6.4 81.3   Hanawa, Higashishirakawa District
Chikatsu 近津ちかつ 5.1 86.4   Tanagura, Higashishirakawa District
Nakatoyo なかゆたか 2.4 88.8  
Iwaki-Tanakura 磐城いわき棚倉たなぐら 1.7 90.5 Hakuhō Line (busstitution)
Iwaki-Asakawa 磐城浅川いわきあさかわ 6.5 97.0   Asakawa, Ishikawa District
Satoshiraishi 里白石さとしらいし 3.0 100.0  
Iwaki-Ishikawa 磐城石川いわきいしかわ 5.3 105.3   Ishikawa, Ishikawa District
Nogisawa 野木沢のぎさわ 4.8 110.1  
Kawabeoki 川辺かわべおき 2.5 112.6   Tamakawa, Ishikawa District
Izumigō 泉郷いずみごう 2.7 115.3  
Kawahigashi 川東かわひがし 6.9 122.2   Sukagawa
Oshioe しょう塩江しおのえ 3.8 126.0  
Yatagawa 谷田川やたがわ 2.9 128.9   Kōriyama
Iwaki-Moriyama 磐城いわき守山もりやま 3.2 132.1  
Asaka-Nagamori 安積永盛あさかながもり 5.4 137.5 Tōhoku Main Line (for Kuroiso)
Although the Suigun Line officially ends at Asaka-Nagamori Station, all trains arriving at this station continue to Kōriyama Station, traveling a short stretch within the Tōhoku Main Line.
Kōriyama 郡山こおりやま 4.9 - Tōhoku Shinkansen, Tōhoku Main Line (for Fukushima), Ban'etsu East Line, Ban'etsu West Line),
Yamagata Shinkansen connection at Fukushima Station in Fukushima.
Kōriyama Fukushima

Hitachi-Ōta Branch

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Station Japanese Distance from
Kami-Sugaya (km)
Transfers Location
Between
stations
Total
Kami-Sugaya 上菅谷かみすがだに - 0.0 Suigun Line (Main Line) Naka Ibaraki
Minami-Sakaide 南酒出みなみさかいで 2.5 2.5  
Nukada 額田ぬかた 1.1 3.6  
Kawai 河合かわい 3.1 6.7   Hitachiōta
Yagawara 谷河原やがわら 1.5 8.2  
Hitachi-Ōta 常陸太田ひたちおおた 1.3 9.5  
Passing information
  • Double-tracked section: "∥"
  • Passing loops: "◇", "∨", "^"
  • No passing loops: "|"

Rolling stock

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Past

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KiHa 110 series DMU at Kōriyama Station, January 2008

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Kubo, Satoshi, プレイバック展望てんぼう おく久慈くじ清流せいりゅうライン [Playback Observation: Suigun Line], Japan Railfan Magazine, 61 (723): 114–119
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