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Nishi-Kyushu Line
MR-600 series diesel railcar
Overview
Status	In operation
Owner	Matsuura Railway
Locale	Kyushu (Saga and Nagasaki Prefectures)
Termini	Arita Sasebo
Stations	57
Service
Type	Regional rail
Operator(s)	Matsuura Railway
Rolling stock	MR-400 series DMU, MR-500 series DMU, MR-600 series DMU
History
Opened	1 March 1945 (fully)
Technical
Line length	93.9 km (58.3 mi)
Number of tracks	Entire line single tracked
Character	Urban and rural
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	None
Operating speed	85 km/h (53 mph)

The Nishi-Kyushu Line (西九州線, Nishi-Kyūshū-sen) is a Japanese railway line operated by the private railway operator Matsuura Railway, which connects Arita in Saga Prefecture with Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture. This is the westernmost railway line in Japan, with Tabira-Hiradoguchi Station being the westernmost station.

History

The Kansai Coal Mining Co. opened a 12 km (7.5 mi), 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge line from Saza to Sechibaru via Yoshii in 1896.

The 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) Arita - Imari section of the line was opened on 7 August 1898 by the Imari Railway (伊万里鉄道, Imari Tetsudō), which merged with the Kyushu Railway in December of the same year. In 1907, the line was nationalised, becoming the Imari Line (伊万里線, Imari-sen). The line was extended to Imabuku in 1930, Matsuura in 1933, Tabira-Hiradoguchi in 1935, and Senryūgataki in 1939.

The then isolated Hidariishi - Ainoura section was opened as a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge line by the Sasebo Light Railway (佐世保軽便鉄道, Sasebo Keibin Tetsudō) for coal transportation on 27 March 1920, and extended to Kami-Sasebo the following year. In 1931, it was extended to Saza, with the company acquiring the Kansai Coal line to Sechibaru in 1933 and passenger services to Yoshii commencing in 1934. A connection to Sasebo opened in 1935, and the company was nationalised in October 1936. Between 1943 and 1944, the line was regauged to 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in), with a new alignment opened in March 1945, linking the two sections.

From 1 April 1988, the line between Arita and Sasebo was transferred from JNR operation to the privately owned Matsuura Railway.

Former connecting lines

• Yoshii Station: The 7 km (4.3 mi) Sechibaru line to Sechibaru, opened by the Kansai Coal Mining Co. as a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge line in 1896, was nationalised and regauged at the same time as the main line, and closed in 1971.
• Saza Station: The 4 km (2.5 mi) line to Usunoura was opened by the Sasebo Light Railway for coal transportation in 1931. It was also nationalised and regauged at the same time as the main line, and closed in 1971.
• Hidariishi Station: The 4 km (2.5 mi) Yunoki line to 'Upper' Sasebo opened in 1921 as a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge line, became a branch with the opening of the direct line to Sasebo in 1935, was regauged in 1943 and remained in service until flood damage closed it in 1967.
• Sasebo station - A 5 km (3.1 mi) line to a US Forces Japan oil storage facility operated between 1950 and 1978.

Stations

●: Stops   |: Does not stop

Rapid Service: Down trains (to Sasebo) operate between Saza and Sasebo. Up trains (from Sasebo) operate between Sasebo and Tabira-Hiradoguchi.

See also

• List of railway lines in Japan

References

This article incorporates material from the corresponding article in the Japanese Misplaced Pages

1. ^ Terada, Hirokazu (19 January 2013). データブック日本の私鉄 [Databook: Japan's Private Railways]. Japan: Neko Publishing. p. 183. ISBN 978-4-7770-1336-4.

External links

• Matsuura Railway official website (in Japanese)

• Rail transport in Saga Prefecture
• Rail transport in Nagasaki Prefecture
• 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan
• Railway lines opened in 1898
• Japanese third-sector railway lines