Nara Line (JR West)

This article is about the West Japan Railway Company (JR West) line. For the Kintetsu line, see Kintetsu Nara Line.
Nara Line
 D 

A 221 series EMU on a Miyakoji Rapid service
Overview
Type Heavy rail
System Urban Network
Locale Kyoto Prefecture
Termini Kizu
Kyoto
Stations 19
Operation
Opened 1879
Owner JR West
Rolling stock 103 series, 221 series
Technical
Line length 34.7 km (21.6 mi)
Track gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification 1,500 V DC overhead catenary
Operating speed 110 km/h (68 mph) (double-track)
95 km/h (59 mph) (single-track)
Route map
Legend
 1: Sagano Line
 2: Biwako Line
1
3: JR Kyoto Line

0.0 Kyoto← 3 ／ 2 →　■

Nara Line (old route)・Kintetsu Kyoto Line

Tōkaidō Shinkansen
Tōji Temporary Station・Tōji

Kamo River・Lake Biwa Canal

Keihan Main Line

1.1 Tōfukuji
Toba-kaidō
Fushimi
Keihan Main Line
2.7 Inari
Tōkaidō Main Line (old route)
Meishin Expressway
5.0 JR Fujinomori
Nara Line (old route)
 7.2 Momoyama
Keihan Uji Line
Rokujizō (Keihan)
Yamashina River

9.6 Rokujizō (■ T01)
Uji Gunpowder Works
　Kohata factory spur
10.6 Kohata・L: Kowata (Keihan)

12.0 Ōbaku
Keiji Bypass
Mimurodo
13.9 Ujigawa S.B.(–1926)
Uji (Keihan)
 Uji River
 14.9 Uji
16.3 JR Ogura
Iseda
18.1 Shinden・L: Ōkubo
20.2 Jōyō
Kintetsu Kyoto Line
 22.0 Nagaike
 Hase River
 24.0 Yamashiro-Aodani
 Aodani River
 25.3 Yamashiro-Taga
 27.3 Tamamizu
 Tama River
 Tenjin River
 Fudō River
 30.3 Tanakura
 33.1 Kamikoma
Kizu River
Shin-Kizu (–1911)
←Gakkentoshi Line
Yamatoji Line →
 34.7 Kizu
 37.9 Narayama
 41.7 Nara
 Yamatoji Line

The Nara Line (奈良線 Nara-sen) is a commuter rail line in the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area, operated by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West). Its official termini are Kizu Station in Kizugawa and Kyōto Station in Kyoto, within Kyoto Prefecture; however, all trains continue past Kizu on the Yamatoji Line (Kansai Main Line) to Nara Station in Nara, Nara Prefecture.

Overview

Route map
Detail of the Fushimi area in Kyoto

The Nara Line is a part of the JR West "Urban Network" in the Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe area. Its primary role is that of an intercity-suburban commuter line, ferrying people to and from work and school in Kyoto and Nara; it is also well-used by tourists holding the Japan Rail Pass, as visiting the historical landmarks of Uji and Nara makes an easy day-trip from Kyoto. At Kyoto, the line connects to the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, the Tōkaidō Main Line (Biwako Line / JR Kyoto Line), and the San'in Main Line (Sagano Line), while at Kizu, it connects to the Kansai Main Line (Yamatoji Line) for Kamo, and the Katamachi Line (Gakkentoshi Line) for Kyōbashi Station in Osaka. At Nara, travelers can change trains to continue westward to Hōryūji and JR Namba.

As Kintetsu operates a "Nara Line" of its own, the line is often referred to as the "JR Nara Line" ("JNR Nara Line" prior to 1988). Strictly speaking, the Kintetsu Nara Line links Osaka and Nara (a counterpart to the Yamatoji Line), rather than Kyoto and Nara (connected primarily by the Kintetsu Kyoto Line). However, there are many through trains to the Kintetsu Nara Line from Kyōto Station, so "JR" is often appended for clarity. This was aided by the 1988 introduction of the official nicknames "JR Kyoto Line", "JR Kobe Line" (for parts of the Tōkaidō Main Line and San'yō Main Line) and "JR Takarazuka Line" (southern half of the Fukuchiyama Line) within the Urban Network, making the "JR Nara Line" construction a natural parallel, if unofficial, usage.

Since the formation of JR West in 1988, the line has been under the jurisdiction of the Tennoji Railway Operations Office in Osaka, and its trains use the Osaka Branch's rail yards in Nara. On the other hand, the stations themselves (apart from Kizu) are administered by the Kyoto Branch of JR West.

The official line color used on JR West route maps and station guides is brown.

The entirety of the line is part of the Greater Osaka Metropolitan Area. As such, all stations are outfitted with card readers for ICOCA and compatible smart fare-cards; however, Nagaike – Kamikoma are unmanned, and have only simplified automatic ticket gates. Apart from a few stations, the J-Through Card (a prepaid, single-charge fare card) can be used in lieu of cash to buy passenger tickets.

While Kizu is properly the "up" (上り nobori) end of the line, the Kansai Main Line's historically greater importance with respect to the Nara Line means that it is treated as "down" (下り kudari). Thus, trains bound for Nara are "down" trains, and those bound for Kyoto are "up", according to the direction they travel on the Yamatoji Line between Kizu and Nara. Except where noted, this article adheres to the same convention.

Line name

The Nara Line proper runs from Kyōto Station to Kizu Station, and lies entirely within Kyoto Prefecture; it has no trackage whatsoever in Nara Prefecture. However, the line was originally built by Nara Railway between Kyoto Station and Nara Station; it was only later, after merging with Kansai Railway, that the section between Kizu and Nara became a part of the Osaka – Nagoya route and was officially made a separate line.

Nara Line services run between Nara and Kyōto stations, and are treated as such by passenger announcements and route maps. Thus, even while operating on the Kansai Main Line (Yamatoji Line), trains to and from Kyoto are considered as being on the "Nara Line".

Station list

Line name No. Station Japanese Distance (km) Regional Rapid
[* 1]		 Rapid
[* 2]		 Miyakoji
Rapid
[* 3]		 Transfers   Location
Between
stations		 Total
Nara Line JR-D01 Kyōto 京都 - 0.0 ● ● ●
∥ Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto Kyoto
JR-D02 Tōfukuji 東福寺 1.1 1.1 ● ● ● Keihan Main Line (KH36) ∥ Higashiyama, Kyoto
JR-D03 Inari 稲荷 1.6 2.7 ｜ ｜ ○   ∥ Fushimi-ku, Kyoto
JR-D04 JR Fujinomori JR藤森 2.3 5.0 ｜ ｜ ｜   ∨
JR-D05 Momoyama 桃山 2.2 7.2 ｜ ｜ ｜   ◇
JR-D06 Rokujizō 六地蔵 2.4 9.6 ● ● ●
◇ Uji
JR-D07 Kohata 木幡 1.0 10.6 ｜ ｜ ｜   ◇
JR-D08 Ōbaku 黄檗 1.4 12.0 ｜ ｜ ｜ Keihan Uji Line (KH75) ◇
JR-D09 Uji 宇治 2.9 14.9 ● ● ●   ∧
JR-D10 JR Ogura JR小倉 1.4 16.3 ● ● ｜   ∥
JR-D11 Shinden 新田 1.8 18.1 ● ● ｜  B  Kintetsu Kyoto Line (B12:Ōkubo) ∨
JR-D12 Jōyō 城陽 2.1 20.2 ● ● ●   ◇ Jōyō
JR-D13 Nagaike 長池 1.8 22.0 ● ｜ ｜   ◇
JR-D14 Yamashiro-Aodani 山城青谷 2.0 24.0 ● ｜ ｜   ◇
JR-D15 Yamashiro-Taga 山城多賀 1.3 25.3 ● ｜ ｜   ◇ Ide, Tsuzuki District
JR-D16 Tamamizu 玉水 2.0 27.3 ● ● ●   ◇
JR-D17 Tanakura 棚倉 3.0 30.3 ● ｜ ｜   ◇ Kizugawa
JR-D18 Kamikoma 上狛 2.8 33.1 ● ｜ ｜   ◇
JR-D19 Kizu 木津 1.6 34.7 ● ● ●
∧
Kansai Main Line
JR-D20 Narayama 平城山 3.2 37.9 ● ｜ ｜ [* 5] ∥ Nara Nara
JR-D21 Nara 奈良 3.8 41.7 ● ● ●
∥
  1. ↑ 区間快速
  2. ↑ 快速
  3. ↑ みやこ路快速
  4. ↑ The Kosei line's official terminus is Yamashina Station on the Tōkaidō Main Line (Biwako Line), but all trains continue through to Kyoto.
  5. ↑ Kansai Main Line (Yamatoji Line) Rapid Service and Yamatoji Rapid stop; Gakkentoshi Line Rapid Service stop
  • Uji City is considering the possibility of a new station between Ōbaku and Uji (cf. Mimurodo Station on the Keihan Uji Line.)
  • Of these stations, Kizu, Uji, Rokujizō, and Kyoto are directly operated by JR West; Yamashiro-Taga is unmanned; Kamikoma and Tanakura are staffed part-time; and the remainder are staffed by JR West Transportation Services.

Abandoned sections

Numbers in parentheses are the distance from Kyoto Station. The portion between Kyoto and Fushimi is now part of the Kintetsu Kyoto Line.

Kyoto (0.00 km) – Hachijō Temporary Station (0.80 km) – Tōji Temporary Station (1.13 km) – Fushimi (5.31 km) – Momoyama (7.08 km)

Rolling stock

103-series local train near Inari

All trains are based at Nara Depot.

Also operated on the Yamatoji Line and Osaka Loop Line, there are 4 and 6-car trainsets. 4 and 6-car trainsets are mainly used for Miyakoji Rapid, Rapid Service, and Regional Rapid, though on the Nara Line, the majority of trains are 4 cars.
4-car 103 series trains are used not only as local trains on the Nara Line and the Yamatoji Line, but can be seen coupled together as 8-car trains during rush hour on the Osaka Loop Line, and as Regional Rapid trains on the Yamatoji Line. Some of the carriages have been replaced by those transferred from the Morinomiya Depot.

History

Abandoned abutments of a bridge on the former route of the Nara Line are under the bridge of the Kintetsu Kyoto Line.

The Nara Line was originally constructed from Kyoto to Nara by Nara Railway, but at the time of its completion, the Kyoto – Momoyama section ran via the route now used by the Kintetsu Kyoto Line. In 1921, on the day that the Tōkaidō Main Line was re-routed from its original path to the new Baba (Zeze) – Kyoto alignment via the Higashiyama Tunnel, the Kyoto – Inari portion of the old route became part of the Nara Line, and new track was laid between Inari and Momoyama. At the same time, the original Kyoto – Fushimi alignment was abandoned, and the Fushimi – Momoyama section became freight-only. Later on, the old right-of-way from Kyoto to Fushimi was sold off to the Kintetsu Kyoto Line's predecessor, Nara Electric Railway.

After the Nara Electric Railway line opened in 1928, its frequency of service and drastically reduced transit time took away much of the demand for through-service between the Tokaido Main Line and the Nara Line. In the 1950s, the Nara Line was among the earliest of the JNR lines to be converted from steam locomotives to diesel multiple unit trainsets, and new stations were opened; after that, however, not much capital was spent on the line, and was not until 1984 that it was finally electrified. In short, it was treated entirely as a local line, rather than as an intercity commuter corridor. The turning point for the Nara Line was only after Japanese National Railways was privatized, and it became part of the JR West network. An article in the Asahi Shimbun from 1991, the same year as JR announced it would be pumping capital into the Nara Line, described the perceived cause for this sudden interest as follows: "During [the previous year's] string of visits by the new Emperor and Empress, their Majesties arrived in Kyoto via JR Central's Tōkaidō Shinkansen, then immediately boarded the Kintetsu line for Nara, ignoring the local JR West trains entirely."[1]

Timeline

Future developments

Double-tracking

Report No. 8 from the 2004 Kinki Transportation Commission, "Projects contributing to the improvement of services through strengthening transport capacity, etc." (輸送力の強化等によるサービス向上に資する事業 Yusōryoku no kyōka nado ni yoru sābisu kōjō ni shi-suru jigyō), included double-tracking on the JR Fujinomori – Uji and Shinden – Kizu sections of the Nara Line. Following the completion of double-tracking work on the Sanin Main Line (Sagano Line) between Kyoto and Sonobe in March 2010, JR West and Kyoto Prefecture began conferring with regards to double-tracking of the Nara Line.

However, due to the financial constraints of these local governments, as well as JR West's own fiscal condition, it was ultimately announced that the line would only be fully double-tracked as far as Jōyō, with an additional double-track section between Yamashiro-Taga and Tamamizu.[3] Pre-construction work began in 2013, and the overall duplication is expected to last approximately 10 years, with completion in 2022-23. The remaining single-track sections will be between Jōyō and Yamashiro-Taga, and between Tamamizu and Kizu.

References

  1. ↑ 「JR奈良線、次々とテコ入れ策 初の快速や増便計画」 (JR Nara Line to be successively shored up; first ever rapid-service, increased runs.) Asahi Shimbun, 1991-01-07, evening edition
  2. 1 2 在来線特急列車などの全席禁煙化ならびに在来線ホームの禁煙化の拡大について - JR West press release, 2009-03-26
  3. ↑ http://www.westjr.co.jp/press/article/2014/12/page_6517.html
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nara Line (JR West).
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/14/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.