Sōbu Main Line

Sōbu Main Line
Sōbu Main Line
	JO
	Sōbu/Yokosuka LineE235 seriesEMU
Overview
Owner	East Japan Railway Company(JR East)
Locale	Tokyo,Chibaprefectures
Termini	Chiba; Chōshi;
Stations	22
Service
Operator(s)	JR East,JR Freight
History
Opened	20 July 1894
Technical
Track gauge	1,067 mm(3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	1,500 V DC withOverhead catenary
Route map
Route map
	Outline west of Chiba
	Legend
	-
	4.3
	4.8
	0.0
	-
	11.7
	7.2
	0.0
	-
	8.9

TheSōbu Main Line(Japanese:Tổng võ bổn tuyến,Hepburn:Sōbu-honsen)is a Japanese railway line operated by theEast Japan Railway Company(JR East) in Japan. It connects Tokyo with the east coast ofChiba Prefecture,passing through the cities ofFunabashi,Chiba,andChōshi.Its name derives from the oldprovincesof the area which it serves:Musashi(Japanese:VõTàng quốc),Shimōsa(Japanese:HạTổngQuốc) andKazusa(Japanese:ThượngTổngQuốc). Its official line color is navy.

Definition

Formally, the Sōbu Main Line refers to the line from Tokyo toChōshi.

However, informally, the character of the line changes at Chiba. The more urbanized section west of Chiba is informally, but commonly, called theSōbu Line(Japanese:Tổng võ tuyến,Japanese pronunciation:[Sōbusen]) without using "Main". The "Main Line", in popular usage, refers to the more rural section east of Chiba.

Route maps, signs at stations, in trains, and the vocal announcements all maintain this distinction:with Mainfor the eastern rural section;without Mainfor the western frequent travel zone.^[1]

Description

Distances:
- Tokyo-Chōshi:120.5 km
- Kinshichō-Ochanomizu:4.3 km
- Shin-Koiwa- Etchūjima Freight (Etchūjima freight line): 11.7 km
- Shin-Koiwa-Kanamachi(Shinkane freight line): 8.9 km
Electrification: DC 1500 V excluding the non electrified Etchūjima freight line
Tracks
- Quadruple: Kinshichō - Chiba
- Double: Tokyo - Kinshichō, Kinshichō - Ochanomizu, Chiba -Sakura
- Single: Sakura - Chōshi, Shin-Koiwa - Etchūjima Freight Line, Shin-Koiwa - Kanamachi Freight Line

Operation

Services west of Chiba (Tokyo/Ochanomizu - Chiba)

Local trains run betweenOchanomizuandChiba Stationand are called the Chūō-Sōbu Line(Japanese:Trung ương ・ tổng võ tuyến,Japanese pronunciation:[tɕɯːoːsoːbɯseɴ]) orSōbu-Local Line(Japanese:Tổng võ hoãn hành tuyến,Japanese pronunciation:[soːbɯkaŋkoːseɴ]).

Rapid trains are also operated fromTokyo Stationto Chiba Station and use different tracks from the local service trains. These Rapid trains sometimes continue east on the Main Line after reaching Chiba. In reverse, Sobu Main Line trains also sometimes continue west on the Rapid Line after reaching Chiba, some even go on the Yokosuka Line after Tokyo. The rapid trains are calledSōbu Rapid Line(Japanese:Tổng võ khoái tốc tuyến,Japanese pronunciation:[soːbɯkaisokɯseɴ]).

For the most part, Rapid and Local trains run parallel with each other, except when they reachKinshicho,where Sōbu Line Local trains continue onto theChūō LineatOchanomizuviaAkihabara,while Sōbu Line Rapid trains head toTokyo,with most of them continuing onto theYokosuka Line.

For more details of services west of Chiba, see the relevant articles for the Local and Rapid Lines.

Services east of Chiba (Chiba - Chōshi)

The section east of Chiba, from Chiba toChōshi,is commonly known as theSōbu Main Line(Japanese:Tổng võ bổn tuyến,Japanese pronunciation:[SōbuHonSen]). The aforementioned Sōbu Rapid Line through service trains would terminate atSakuraorNarutōon the Main Line, or go on theNarita Lineafter Sakura forNarita AirportorKashima-Jingu.Aside from that, there are also local trains running along the entire section, from Chiba to Chōshi.

Limited express

TheNarita ExpresstoNarita Airport Stationand theAyameto Chōshiuse the Sōbu Main Line for their journey.

Shiosai,also a Limited Express service, which operates fromTokyo StationtoChōshi,also uses this line.

Stations

Tokyo / Ochanomizu - Kinshichō - Chiba

Here is a list of stations within this section. ([ ] denotes the Ochanomizu - Kinshicho section.) Tokyo-Shin-Nihombashi-Bakurochō[Ochanomizu-Akihabara-Asakusabashi-Ryōgoku-Kinshichō]Kameido-Hirai-Shin-Koiwa-Koiwa-Ichikawa-Moto-Yawata-Shimōsa-Nakayama-Nishi-Funabashi-Funabashi-Higashi-Funabashi-Tsudanuma-Makuharihongō-Makuhari-Shin-Kemigawa-Inage-Nishi-Chiba-Chiba

Chiba - Chōshi

For the connections of the line, see the route diagram.

From Chiba to Sakura, the section is double track; and from Sakura onwards to Choshi, the section is single track.

All stations on this section of the line are inChiba Prefecture.

Legend:

●: All trains stop
▲: Only westbound trains (for Chiba, Tokyo) stop
｜:All trains pass

Station			Distance			Sōbu Main Line Local	Sōbu Line (Rapid) through service	Transfers	Location
No.	Name	Japanese	Between stations	From Chiba	From Tokyo	Sōbu Main Line Local	Rapid	Transfers	Location
							Through toJOSōbu Line (Rapid)
JO28	Chiba	Thiên diệp	-	0.0	39.2	●	●	JOSōbu Line (Rapid) (JO28) (Occasional through service) JBChūō-Sōbu Line(JB39) ■Uchibō Line ■Sotobō Line Chiba Urban MonorailLine 1, Line 2 KSKeisei Chiba Line(Keisei Chiba:KS59)	Chūō-ku, Chiba
JO29	Higashi-Chiba	Đông thiên diệp	0.9	0.9	40.1	●	｜		Chūō-ku, Chiba
JO30	Tsuga	Đô hạ	3.3	4.2	43.4	●	●	Chiba Urban Monorail Line 2	Wakaba-ku, Chiba
JO31	Yotsukaidō	Tứ nhai đạo	3.5	7.7	46.9	●	●		Yotsukaidō
JO32	Monoi	Vật tỉnh	4.2	11.9	51.1	●	●		Yotsukaidō
JO33	Sakura	Tá thương	4.2	16.1	55.3	●	●	■Narita Line	Sakura
	Minami-Shisui	Nam tửu 々 tỉnh	4.0	20.1	59.3	●	｜		Shisui
	Enokido	Giả hộ	2.9	23.0	62.2	●	｜		Yachimata
	Yachimata	Bát nhai	3.7	26.7	65.9	●	▲		Yachimata
	Hyūga	Nhật hướng	5.8	32.5	71.7	●	｜		Sanmu
	Narutō	Thành đông	5.2	37.7	76.9	●	▲	■Togane Line
	Matsuo	Tùng vĩ	5.6	43.3	82.5	●
	Yokoshiba	Hoành chi	4.3	47.6	86.8	●			Yokoshibahikari
	Iigura	Phạn thương	3.8	51.4	90.6	●			Sōsa
	Yōkaichiba	Bát nhật thị tràng	3.1	54.5	93.7	●			Sōsa
	Higata	Càn tả	5.1	59.6	98.8	●			Asahi
	Asahi	Húc	4.8	64.4	103.6	●
	Iioka	Phạn cương	2.7	67.1	106.3	●
	Kurahashi	Thương kiều	2.9	70.0	109.2	●
	Saruda	Viên điền	2.6	72.6	111.8	●			Chōshi
	Matsugishi	Tùng ngạn	5.5	78.1	117.3	●		■Narita Line
	Chōshi	Diêu tử	3.2	81.3	120.5	●		Chōshi Electric Railway Line

Rolling stock

Limited express

Local/Rapid

Chūō-Sōbu Line

Sōbu Line (Rapid)

Sōbu Main Line

209-2000/2100 seriesEMUs
E217 seriesEMUs
E235-1000 seriesEMUs (since 21 December 2020)

History

Private construction

Initially, the line was constructed by a private company, Sōbu Railway(Japanese:Tổng võ thiết đạo,Japanese pronunciation:[SōbuTetsudō]). It opened the first service sections, betweenIchikawaandSakuraon July 20, 1894, and extended toTokyo City. In December of the same year, Honjo(Japanese:Bổn sở,nowKinshichō) was opened, and in 1904, on the east bank ofSumida River,Ryōgokubashi (Japanese:Lạng quốc kiều,nowRyōgoku) became a terminal of this line. The access routes to the west, to Tokyo City, weretramwaysfor passengers and ships for freight. From Sahara to the east, this line reached another terminus,Chōshiin 1897.

Nationalisation

The line was nationalized in 1907 under the Railway Nationalization Act, and was double-tracked from Ryōgokubashi to Chiba the next year. The predecessor of theJapanese National Railways(JNR) planned to connect with other lines inside Tokyo. In 1932, a new passenger line was opened fromOchanomizuto Ryōgoku (with new platform besides the original terminal facility), and a frequent service of EMUs^{[clarification needed]}commenced. Electrification to Chiba was completed in 1935, and local trains have run through from the Chūō line since then. But, except for a few trains, no rapid service was operated on this line, and the passengers had to use the local train, or its rival,Keisei Electric Railway.

Bombing of Tokyo

On March 10, 1945, theBombing of Tokyocaused casualties estimated at 70,000–100,000, and destroyed stations of the line. During the last days ofWorld War IIin 1945, theImperial Japanese Armythought theUS Armywould attempt a landing operation, "Operation Coronet",onKujūkuri Beach,and transferred troops on the Sōbu Main Line.

Steam trains

Between Chiba and Chōshi, in the rural area ofChiba Prefecture,steam traction was used until recently. Fish andsoy saucefrom Chōshi were major freight items. Because Tokyo was close, JNR did not provide rapid or express trains from Ryōgoku to Chōshi until 1958. JNR operated tourist trains from Ryōgoku to theseaside resortson the coast from the 1950s.

Five-destination operation

In the 1960s, JNR started theFive-Destination Operation(Japanese:Ngũ phương diện tác chiến,Japanese pronunciation:[GoHōmenSakusen]) to steeply increase commuter demand, and it determined that a new rapid line would be constructed fromTokyo Stationto Chiba. A new underground line from Tokyo to Kinshichō, and a four-tracked section to Tsudanuma were opened in 1972, and the operator began frequent rapid services from Tokyo to Chiba. The line was managed by theEast Japan Railway Company(JR East) from 1987. The parallelKeiyō Linewas opened closer to the coast in 1990. It was first constructed for freight services but later to carry passengers.

Further electrification

To the east of Chiba, electrification reached Chōshi in 1974, and Limited ExpressShiosaihas been operated from the underground Tokyo Station since 1975. Freight services from Chōshi ceased in 1986, just before the privatization of JNR, and regular passenger trains stopped using the Ryōgoku terminal platforms in 1988. JR East started a new airport train, theNarita Expressin 1991. Rapid urbanization around Chiba Station made this section important for commuter traffic, for the city of Chiba, and for Greater Tokyo.

Former connecting lines

Shimosa-Nakayama station (seeChuo-Sobu Line) - A 2 km (1.2 mi)610 mm(2 ft) gauge human powered line, built to haul sweet potatoes and firewood, but which also carried passengers from 1911, operated to Kamagaya between 1908 and 1918.
Yachimata station - The Narita Railway Co. opened a 14 km (8.7 mi),600 mm(1 ft11+5⁄8in) gauge line to Sanrizuka in 1917. In 1928 the line was converted to1,067 mm(3 ft 6 in) gauge in conjunction with the extension of the Tako Line (see next entry) to Youkaichiba via Sanrizuka. The line closed in 1940.
Youkaichiba station - The Narita Railway Co. operated the Tako line, 30 km (19 mi) in length, toNaritabetween 1928 and 1944.

References

JTB(ed.) (2008). "JTB Jikokuhyō"JTB thời khắc biểu[JTB Timetable].{{cite journal}}:|author=has generic name (help);Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport(ed.) (2000).Heisei 13 Nendo-ban Tetsudō YōranBình thành 13 niên độ bản thiết đạo yếu lãm[Railway Directory FY2001] (in Japanese). Tokyo:(Thiết đạo đồ thư khan hành hội,Tetsudōtosho Kankōkai).pp. 34, 60, 279, 292.ISBN 4-88548-099-X.{{cite book}}:|author=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

^This custom is also seen inChūō Main Lineand less inTōkaidō Main Line

[1] This custom is also seen inChūō Main Lineand less inTōkaidō Main Line

[1]