Abukuma Kyuko

Abukuma Kyuko (阿武隈急行株式会社, Abukuma Kyūkō Kabushiki-gaisha), sometimes referred to as Abukuma Express, is a third-sector railway transportation company headquartered in Date, Fukushima, Japan. Its sole line is the Abukuma Express Line.

Abukuma Kyuko

Abukuma Express AB900 series train at Tsukinoki Station
Company type	Third sector
Genre	Rail transport
Founded	5 April 1984
Headquarters	Date, Fukushima , Japan
Area served	Northern Fukushima Prefecture and southwest Miyagi Prefecture
Services	Passenger railway
Website	www.abukyu.co.jp

History

Abukuma Kyuko was founded on April 5, 1984, as a third-sector railway for the purpose of taking over operation of Japanese National Railways' Marumori Line, which ran 17.4 km and linked Marumori Station to Tsukinoki Station.^[1]

The Marumori Line was reopened as the Abukuma Express Line on July 1, 1986, operated by Abukuma Kyuko.^[1] The Abukuma Express Line was extended to Fukushima Station in the south from July 1, 1988.^[1]

Operations

Main article: Abukuma Express Line

Abukuma Kyuko operates the Abukuma Express Line, which runs 54.9 km from Fukushima Station in the south to Tsukinoki Station in the north.

Rolling stock

• KiHa 22 series [ja] (1986–1988)^{[verification needed]}
• A417 series [ja] (former 417 series [ja]; October 2008 – March 2016)^[2]
• 8100 series [ja] (since 1988)^[3]
• AB900 series (since July 2019)^[4]

• 
  A417 series
• 
  8100 series
• 
  AB900 series

Ownership

The shareholders of Abukuma Kyuko consist primarily of local and prefectural governments. It shares a platform at Fukushima Station with Fukushima Kotsu.

Shareholder	Number of shares	Percentage of shares
Fukushima Prefecture	8,400	28.0%
Miyagi Prefecture	7,680	25.6%
Fukushima Transportation	6,000	20.0%
Fukushima City	1,836	6.1%
Date	1,568	5.2%
Kakuda	1,504	5.0%
Marumori	1,062	3.6%
Sendai	398	1.3%
Shibata	221	0.7%
Natori	221	0.7%
Iwanuma	221	0.7%
Shiroishi	150	0.5%
Nine unnamed shareholders	739	2.5%

See also

• List of railway companies in Japan