Kosei Line

Kosei Line
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Special Rapid Service train (right) and Thunderbird limited express (left) at Hira Station
Overview
Native name 湖西線
Type Heavy rail
System Urban Network (Yamashina - Nagahara)
Locale Kyoto Prefecture and Shiga Prefecture
Termini Yamashina
Ōmi-Shiotsu
Stations 21
Operation
Opened 1974
Owner JR West
Operator(s) JR West
JR Freight
Technical
Line length 74.1 km (46.0 mi)
Track gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification 1,500 V DC, overhead lines
Operating speed 130 km/h (80 mph)

The Kosei Line (湖西線 Kosei-sen) is a commuter rail line in Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Metropolitan Area, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The line was completed in 1974 by the former Japanese National Railways (JNR) to provide faster access from the Kansai region to the Hokuriku region. It originates at Yamashina Station in Yamashina-ku, Kyoto and ends at Ōmi-Shiotsu Station in Nagahama, Shiga.

Its name means "the line to the west of the lake," indicating that it approximately parallels the western shore of Biwako. Trains continue from Yamashina to Kyoto Station on the Tōkaidō Main Line for convenient transfer to lines serving the Kansai as well as the Tōkaidō Shinkansen.

In addition to local, Rapid and Special Rapid services, limited express trains such as Raichō, Thunderbird and Nihonkai as well as freight trains are frequently operated on the line. Some of limited express trains stop at Ōtsukyō or Katata and others skip all stations on the line.

History

A direct Tsuruga - Kyoto line was included in the 1922 Railway Construction Act.

In the meantime, the Kowaka Railway Co. opened a line from Hamaotsu on the Keihan Ishiyama Sakamoto Line 51km to Omi-Imazu between 1923 and 1929. Between 1947 and 1965 there was a connection between Zeze on the Tokaido Main Line and Hamaotsu, allowing direct connection to the Tokaido Line.

The line was purchase by JNR and closed in 1969 so the Kosei line could be constructed over parts of the alignment, with the entire new line opening in 1974 as a dual track electrified line with CTC signalling.

The section from Nagahara to Ōmi-Shiotsu, originally electrified with 20 kV AC, was re-electrified to 1,500 V DC on September 24, 2006 enabling DC-only EMUs used in Osaka-Kyoto region to operate, and the Special Rapid through train service from JR Kyoto Line (Tokaido Main Line) was extended beyond Ōmi-Shiotsu to Tsuruga on the Hokuriku Main Line.

Stations

Line name No. Name Japanese Distance (km) Local Rapid Special
Rapid		 Transfers Location
between
stations		 from
Yamashina
Tōkaidō Main Line JR-B31 Kyoto 京都 5.5 5.5 S S S Tōkaidō Shinkansen
Tōkaidō Main Line (JR Kyoto Line), San'in Main Line (Sagano Line), Nara Line
Kintetsu Kyoto Line
Kyoto Municipal Subway Karasuma Line		 Shimogyō-ku,
Kyoto		 Kyoto
JR-B30 Yamashina 山科 - 0.0 S S S Tōkaidō Main Line (Biwako Line)
Kyoto Municipal Subway Tōzai Line
Keihan Keishin Line (Keihan Yamashina)		 Yamashina-ku,
Kyoto
Kosei Line
JR-B29 Ōtsukyō 大津京 5.4 5.4 S S S Keihan Ishiyama Sakamoto Line (Ojiyama) Ōtsu Shiga
JR-B28 Karasaki 唐崎 3.1 8.5 S | |  
JR-B27 Hieizan Sakamoto 比叡山坂本 2.6 11.1 S S S  
JR-B26 Ogoto-onsen おごと温泉 3.4 14.5 S S |  
JR-B25 Katata 堅田 3.2 17.7 S S S  
JR-B24 Ono 小野 2.1 19.8 S | |  
JR-B23 Wani 和邇 2.7 22.5 S | |  
JR-B22 Hōrai 蓬莱 2.4 24.9 S | |  
JR-B21 Shiga 志賀 2.4 27.3 S | s  
JR-B20 Hira 比良 2.7 30.0 S | |  
JR-B19 Ōmi-Maiko 近江舞子 2.2 32.2 S S S  
JR-B18 Kita Komatsu 北小松 2.3 34.5 S S S  
JR-B17 Ōmi-Takashima 近江高島 6.4 40.9 S S S   Takashima
JR-B16 Adogawa 安曇川 4.1 45.0 S S S  
JR-B15 Shin-Asahi 新旭 3.3 48.3 S S S  
JR-B14 Ōmi-Imazu 近江今津 4.9 53.2 S S S  
JR-B13 Ōmi-Nakashō 近江中庄 4.8 58.0 S S S  
JR-B12 Makino マキノ 3.2 61.2 S S S  
JR-B11 Nagahara 永原 7.1 68.3 S S S   Nagahama
JR-B10 Ōmi-Shiotsu 近江塩津 5.8 74.1 S S S Hokuriku Main Line

Rolling stock

Current

Passenger

Local
Special Rapid and Local
Limited Express

Freight

Former

EMU

DMU

See also

References

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

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