Biwako Line
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The Biwako Line (琵琶湖線 Biwako sen) is the nickname used by the operator of the West Japan Railway Company (JR West) to refer to the portion of the Tōkaidō Main Line (between Maibara Station and Kyoto Station) and the Hokuriku Main Line (between Maibara Station and Nagahama Station). The section, along with JR Kyoto Line and JR Kobe Line, forms a contiguous service that is the main trunk of JR West's "Urban Network" commuter rail network in the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Metropolitan Area.
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Nickname
Introduction
The line is named after Lake Biwa (琵琶湖 Biwa-ko), which the route runs along. Line nicknames were introduced when then newly privatized JR West intended to give supposedly familiar names over official line names, such as Tōkaidō Main Line and Fukuchiyama Line. Biwako Line did not appear in the first list, instead The JR Kyoto Line was to be called up to Maibara. A move in Shiga Prefecture opposed the name, claiming that the name of Kyoto Line in Shiga sounds like an auxiliary, requiring its own name in the prefecture. Biwako Line was thus made to refer to the section between Maibara and Kyoto.
The section of the name was extended to Nagahama, on the alteration of electric supply from AC 20000V to DC 1500V which enabled through operation to Kyoto and Osaka.
Recognition
Though the nickname is used by the operator JR West for passenger announcements, official status of Tōkaidō Main Line has not been changed or discussed. The counterpart for the line, Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) uses its official name "Tōkaidō Main Line" for the section of JR West, at the connections of Kyoto and Maibara. The nickname appears in some local newspapers and real estate advertisements. Frequent passengers understand that the Biwako, JR Kyoto, JR Kobe lines are in fact one line, however, public recognition of the name is still in question, especially among non-users along the line.
Trains
- Special Rapid Service (新快速)
- Trains terminate at Nagahama, Maibara and Yasu. Stops at Nagahama, Tamura, Sakata, Maibara, Hikone, Notogawa, Omi-Hachiman, Yasu, Moriyama, Kusatsu, Ishiyama, Otsu, Yamashina, and Kyoto. Continues on JR Kyoto Line to Osaka and beyond.
- Local trains (普通)
- Operated as rapid service trains when running in the west of Takatsuki (Kyoto in the morning) (3 doors par car)
- These local trains are mainly operated on the Biwako Line and make every stop on the line. They terminate at Maibara and Yasu, with limited service to Nagahama and Ogaki.
- JR Kyoto Line local trains (4 doors par car)
- JR Kyoto Line local service extends to Yasu during rush hour on weekdays.
- Operated as rapid service trains when running in the west of Takatsuki (Kyoto in the morning) (3 doors par car)
Stations
Stations are listed from east to west. The distance of Tokyo - Maibara is 445.9km, and that of Tokyo - Kyoto is 513.6km. Historically, the Tōkaidō Main Line continued from Tokyo to Kyoto and beyond, through Maibara. In the Japanese timetable books, the distances from Tokyo are still shown in the table, although the Biwako Line's officially begins at Mibara.
- S: Trains stop.
- s: limited stop
- |: Trains pass.
- Local (4 doors): JR Kyoto Line local trains
- Local (3 doors): operated as rapid service trains when running in the west of Takatsuki (Kyoto in the morning)
| Station | Japanese | Stop | Transfers | Location | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local (4 doors) | Local (3 doors) | Special Rapid | Ward, City | Prefecture | |||||
| Hokuriku Main Line | |||||||||
| Continuing service from Hokuriku Main Line | |||||||||
| Nagahama | 長浜 | S | S | Nagahama | Shiga | ||||
| Tamura | 田村 | S | S | ||||||
| Sakata | 坂田 | S | S | Maibara | |||||
| Tōkaidō Main Line | |||||||||
| Continuing service from Tōkaidō Main Line (JR Central) | |||||||||
| Maibara | 米原 | S | S | JR Central: Tōkaidō Shinkansen Ohmi Railway: Main Line | Maibara | Shiga | |||
| Hikone | 彦根 | S | S | Ohmi Railway: Main Line | Hikone | ||||
| Minami-Hikone | 南彦根 | S | | | ||||||
| Kawase | 河瀬 | S | | | ||||||
| Inae | 稲枝 | S | | | ||||||
| Notogawa | 能登川 | S | S | Higashiomi | |||||
| Azuchi | 安土 | S | | | Azuchi | |||||
| Ōmi-Hachiman | 近江八幡 | S | S | Ohmi Railway: Yōkaichi Line | Omihachiman | ||||
| Shinohara | 篠原 | S | | | ||||||
| Yasu | 野洲 | s | S | S | Yasu | ||||
| Moriyama | 守山 | s | S | S | Moriyama | ||||
| Rittō | 栗東 | s | S | | | Ritto | ||||
| Kusatsu | 草津 | s | S | S | JR West: Kusatsu Line | Kusatsu | |||
| Minami-Kusatsu | 南草津 | s | S | | | |||||
| Seta | 瀬田 | s | S | | | Otsu | ||||
| Ishiyama | 石山 | s | S | S | Keihan: Ishiyama Sakamoto Line | ||||
| Zeze | 膳所 | s | S | | | Keihan: Ishiyama Sakamoto Line | ||||
| Ōtsu | 大津 | s | S | S | |||||
| Yamashina | 山科 | s | S | S | JR West: Kosei Line Kyoto Municipal Subway: Tōzai Line Keihan: Keishin Line | Yamashina-ku, Kyoto | Kyoto | ||
| Kyoto | 京都 | S | S | S | JR Central: Tōkaidō Shinkansen JR West: Sagano Line (Sanin Main Line), Nara Line Kintetsu: Kyoto Line
| Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto | |||
| Continuing service on JR Kyoto Line | |||||||||
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