| Port Liner | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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 Sannomiya Station of Port Liner | |||
| Overview | |||
| Owner | Kobe New Transit | ||
| Locale | Kobe | ||
| Termini | |||
| Stations | 12 | ||
| Service | |||
| Type | Automated guideway transit | ||
| Rolling stock | 2000 series, 2020 series | ||
| History | |||
| Opened | February 5, 1981 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 10.8 km (6.71 mi) | ||
| Electrification | 600 V 60 Hz 3-phase AC Third rail | ||
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The Port Island Line (ポートアイランド線, Pōtoairando-sen), commonly known as Port Liner (ポートライナー, Pōtorainā) is an urban automated guideway transit (AGT) system in Kobe, Japan, operated by Kobe New Transit.
The initial system linked Sannomiya Station, Kobe's main transit hub, to the man-made Port Island, covering a distance of 6.4 km (4.0 mi) with 9 stations.
Route
As the map indicates, the present system consists of one straight line, originating at Sannomiya Station and terminating at Kobe Airport Station, and a loop attached to the middle of the straight line. The stations on the former are numbered with prefix "P" and on the latter (except those shared with the former) are with prefix "PL".
The main section between Sannomiya and the airport is entirely double track, but the remaining of the loop has not been rebuilt so that the three stations with PL prefix still serve only one way.
Stations
All stations are located in Chūō-ku, Kobe.
| Station | km | Transfers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Double track section | ||||
| P01 | Sannomiya | 三宮 | 0.0 |  Hankyu Kōbe Main Line/Kobe Kosoku Line (Kobe-Sannomiya Station, HK16) Hanshin Electric Railway Main Line (Kobe-Sannomiya, HS32) Kobe Municipal Subway Seishin-Yamate Line (Sannomiya, S03) Kobe Municipal Subway Kaigan Line (Sannomiya-Hanadokeimae Station, K01) JR West JR Kobe Line (Sannomiya, JR-A61)
|
| P02 | Bōeki Center | 貿易センター | 0.8 | |
| P03 | Port Terminal | ポートターミナル | 1.8 | |
| P04 | Naka Kōen | 中公園 | 2.8 | for Naka-Futo
|
| P05 | Minatojima | みなとじま | 3.3 | |
| P06 | Shimin Hiroba | 市民広場 | 3.8 | for Naka-Futo (through service to Sannomiya)
|
| P07 | Iryō Center | 医療センター | 4.6 | |
| P08 | Keisan Kagaku Center | 計算科学センター | 5.4 | |
| P09 | Kobe Airport | 神戸空港 | 8.2 | |
| Single Track Section | ||||
| P06 | Shimin-Hiroba | 市民広場 | 0.0 | for Kobe Airport/Sannomiya
|
| PL07 | Minami Kōen | 南公園 | 0.6 | |
| PL08 | Naka Futō | 中埠頭 | 1.2 | |
| PL09 | Kita Futō | 北埠頭 | 1.7 | |
| P04 | Naka-Kōen | 中公園 | 2.6 | for Kobe Airport/Sannomiya (through service)
|
History
Opened in 1981, the Port Liner was the world's first driverless urban transit system, more than two years ahead of the VAL system used on the Lille Metro, which opened in 1983.
Originally, before the 2006 extension to the airport, the loop section was single track and operated only counter-clockwise trains.
On 2 February 2006, the line was extended by 4.3 km (2.7 mi) to the new Kobe Airport, built on an artificial island near Port Island.
In an announcement in 2018, a proposal was made to extend the Port Island Line to 8-car operation following an increase in ridership.
Minatojima Station, Iryō Center Station and K Computer Mae Stations were renamed on July 1, 2011, from Shimin Byōin Mae Station, Sentan Iryō Center Mae Station and Port Island Minami Station respectively. Following the decommissioning of K computer, K Computer Mae station was again renamed as Keisan Kagaku Center station in June 2021.
Rolling stock
- Kobe New Transit 2000/2020 series (since 2006)
- Kobe New Transit 8000 series (from 1981 until 2009)
See also
References
- 枝久保達也 (25 January 2021). "世界初の完全自動無人運転、「ポートライナー」が40年前に開業した理由". diamond.jp (in Japanese). Diamond. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
- "輸送力強化へ ポートライナー８両編成化を検討" [Considering 8-car train of Portliner to strengthen transportation capacity]. kobe-np.co.jp. 16 February 2018. Archived from the original on 16 February 2018. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
- "ポートライナー、３０年ぶり駅名変更". Asahi Shimbun. July 1, 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-07-03. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
- ""K Computer Mae" on the Port Liner will change its station name in June 2021 - [WTM] Railway & Travel News". 17 November 2020.
External links
- Official site (in Japanese)
- English part of official site(in English)
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| Airport rail links in Japan | |
|---|---|
| In service | |
| Planned | |
| Defunct | |