Ōminato Line

The Ōminato Line (大湊線, Ōminato-sen) is a railway line operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Noheji Station and Ōminato Station on the Shimokita Peninsula in eastern Aomori Prefecture.^[1]

Ōminato Line
A KiHa 100 series DMU at Ominato Station on a Shimokita rapid service in October 2009
Overview
Native name	大湊線
Status	In operation
Owner	East Japan Railway Company
Locale	Aomori Prefecture
Termini	Noheji Ōminato
Stations	11
Service
Type	Heavy rail
Operator(s)	East Japan Railway Company
Rolling stock	KiHa 100 series DMU
History
Opened	1921
Technical
Line length	58.4 km (36.3 mi)
Number of tracks	Entire line single tracked
Character	Rural
Track gauge	3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Electrification	None
Operating speed	85 km/h (53 mph)
Route map Legend km 58.4 Ōminato 55.5 Shimokita Ōhata Line [ja] narrow gauge line to Tanabu-Yanagicho 53.2 Akagawa 47.7 Kanayasawa 42.7 Chikagawa 36.0 Arihata 30.1 Mutsu-Yokohama 23.0 Fukkoshi 9.6 Arito 2.8 Kita-Noheji 0.0 Noheji   Nanbu Jūkan Railway   Aoimori Railway Line This diagram: view talk edit

Station list

Station	Japanese	Distance (km)		Rapid Shimokita	Transfers	Location
		Between stations	Total
Noheji	野辺地	-	0.0	●	Aoimori Railway Line	Noheji	Aomori
Kita-Noheji	北野辺地	2.8	2.8	｜
Arito	有戸	6.3	9.6	｜
Fukkoshi	吹越	13.4	23.0	｜		Yokohama
Mutsu-Yokohama	陸奥横浜	7.1	30.1	●
Arihata	有畑	5.9	36.0	｜
Chikagawa	近川	6.7	42.7	▲		Mutsu
Kanayasawa	金谷沢	5.0	47.7	｜
Akagawa	赤川	5.5	53.2	｜
Shimokita	下北	2.3	55.4	●
Ōminato	大湊	2.9	58.4	●

●: All rapid service trains stop, ○: Some rapid service trains stop

History

On March 20, 1921, the Ōminato Light Railway (大湊軽便線, Ōminato-keibensen) began operations between Noheji Station and Mutsu-Yokohama Station. The line was extended to its present terminus of Ōminato Station by September 25, 1921. In 1922 the line was nationalised, and renamed the Ōminato Line of the Japanese Government Railway (JGR, later JNR).

Express Natsudomari operations began from Aomori Station on a seasonal basis in 1968. The express was later downgraded to rapid service and renamed the Usori, and later the Shimokita. All freight operations ceased on February 1, 1984. With the dissolution and privatization of the JNR on April 1, 1984, the line came under the control of the East Japan Railway Company. On December 4, 1999, a new centralized traffic control (CTC) system became operational. In 2002, seasonal excursion train Kirakira Michinoku operations commenced and a limited number of Shimokita trains were extended to terminate at Hachinohe Station instead of Noheji. The Shimokita service operates a daily round trip to Aomori and 3 round trips to Hachinohe in conjunction with the Aoimori Railway.^[2]

The Tōhoku Main Line, including Noheji was transferred from JR East to Aoimori Railway on December 4, 2010, following the extension of the Tohoku Shinkansen from Hachinohe to Shin-Aomori.^[3] This resulted in the isolation of the Ōminato Line, a branch of the Tōhoku Main Line, from the rest of the JR East network with the exception of the Shimokita service from Aomori where it connects with the Ōu Main Line and Tsugaru Line.^[4]

Former connecting lines

• Akagawa station - The Aomori Prefectural Government operated a 4 km (2.5 mi) 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) gauge line to Tanabu-Yanagicho between 1921 and 1941.
• Shimokita station - The 18 km Ōhata Line [ja] opened in 1939, and construction continued toward Ōma to service a proposed naval base to protect the Tsugaru Strait, and was well advanced when work was suspended in 1943 due to a shortage of materials. The Seikan Tunnel was originally proposed to utilise the roadbed of the uncompleted Ōma Line [ja] (as well as that of the uncompleted Toi Line [ja] near Hakodate) but in 1968 the route was changed to the alignment subsequently built. Freight services ceased on the Ōhata Line in 1979, and operation of it was transferred to Shimokita Koutsu [ja] in 1985. The line closed in 2001.