Gantoku Line

Summary

The Gantoku Line (岩徳線, Gantoku-sen) is a 43.7 km (27.2 mi) railway line operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) in western Japan, connecting Iwakuni Station in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi, and Kushigahama Station in Shūnan, Yamaguchi. The line was originally built as a more direct route between its termini than the original Sanyo Main Line (see History section below) and the Sanyo Shinkansen is more closely aligned to this line than the Sanyo Main Line in this section.

Gantoku Line
A KiHa 40-2000 DMU
Overview
Native name岩徳線
StatusIn operation
OwnerJR West
LocaleYamaguchi Prefecture
Termini
Stations15
Service
TypeRegional rail
Operator(s)JR West
Rolling stockKiHa 40 series DMU
History
Opened5 April 1929
Technical
Line length43.7 km (27.2 mi)
Number of tracksEntire line single tracked
CharacterRural
Track gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
ElectrificationNone
Operating speed95 km/h (59 mph)

Operations edit

Trains operating on this line continue from Kushigahama Station to Tokuyama Station on the Sanyo Main Line.

Stations edit

Station name Japanese Distance (km) Transfers Location
Iwakuni 岩国 0.0   Sanyo Main Line Iwakuni
Nishi-Iwakuni 西岩国 3.7  
Kawanishi 川西 5.6 Nishikigawa Seiryū Line
Hashirano 柱野 8.5  
Kinmeiji 欽明路 15.2  
Kuga 玖珂 17.1  
Suō-Takamori 周防高森 20.6  
Yonekawa 米川 24.4  
Takamizu 高水 28.8   Shūnan
Katsuma 勝間 31.1  
Ōkawachi 大河内 33.3  
Suō-Kubo 周防久保 34.7   Kudamatsu
Ikunoya 生野屋 38.0  
Suō-Hanaoka 周防花岡 39.8  
Kushigahama 櫛ヶ浜 43.7 Sanyō Main Line (toward Yanai) Shūnan
Tokuyama 徳山 47.1   Sanyo Shinkansen
Sanyo Main Line (toward Hōfu and Shin-Yamaguchi)

Morigahara Junction edit

 
Morigahara Junction

Morigahara Junction (森ヶ原信号場, Morigahara Shingōjō) between Kawanishi and Hashirano Stations is the point where the Nishikigawa Seiryū Line diverges from the Gantoku Line. Between this junction and Kawanishi Station, the two lines share the same track.

History edit

 
A morning Gantoku Line train at Iwakuni Station, headed by a class DE10 diesel locomotive, circa 1976

The line was originally built to shorten the Sanyo Main Line along the old San'yōdō. The 3.7 km Iwakuni to Marifu (now Nishi-Iwakuni) section opened in 1929, and the 3.9 km Kushigahama to Suo-Hanaoka section opened in 1932. The remaining 36 km section, including the 3,149 m Kinmeiji tunnel (and six others) opened in 1934, at which time the line became part of the Sanyo Main Line, at that time being the only remaining single line section.[citation needed]

In 1944, the original Sanyo alignment via Yanai was double-tracked and reinstated as the Sanyo Main Line, at which time this line became formally known as the Gantoku Line.[citation needed]

Freight services ceased in 1974, and CTC signalling was commissioned on the entire line in 1982.[citation needed]

References edit