Yodo Line

The Yodo Line (予土線, Yodo-sen) is a railway line in Shikoku, Japan, operated by Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku). It connects Kubokawa Station, Shimanto, Takaoka District in Kōchi Prefecture and Uwajima in Ehime Prefecture.^[1] Its name comes from the ancient provinces of Iyo (伊予) (now Ehime Prefecture) and Tosa (土佐) (now Kōchi Prefecture), which the line connects.

Yodo Line
JR Shikoku KiHa 32 series DMU at Ekawasaki Station
Overview
Status	In operation
Owner	JR Shikoku
Locale	Kōchi, Ehime Prefectures
Termini	Wakai Kita-Uwajima
Stations	20
Service
Type	Heavy rail
Operator(s)	JR Shikoku
Rolling stock	KiHa 32 series, KiHa 31 series, KiHa 185 series DMU
History
Opened	1914
Technical
Line length	76.3 km (47.4 mi)
Number of tracks	Entire line single tracked
Character	Rural
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Old gauge	762 mm (2 ft 6 in)
Electrification	None
Operating speed	85 km/h (53 mph)
Route map

v t e Yodo Line
Legend
Dosan Line to Kōchi (4.4) K26/TK26 Kubokawa (This section is part of the Tosa Kuroshio Railway) 0.0 G27/TK27 Wakai Tosa Kuroshio Railway to Nakamura & Sukumo 3.6 Kawaoku Junction Start of Yodo Line 5.8 G28 Iejigawa 10.7 G29 Utsuigawa 17.6 G30 Tosa-Taishō 26.5 G31 Tosa-Shōwa 31.0 G32 Tōkawa 38.9 G33 Hage 42.7 G34 Ekawasaki 45.4 G35 Nishigahō Kōchi Prefecture Ehime Prefecture 51.3 G36 Matsuchi 53.0 G37 Yoshinobu 55.3 G38 Matsumaru 58.8 G39 Izume 60.4 G40 Chikanaga 62.5 G41 Fukata 65.4 G42 Ōuchi 66.9 G43 Futana 69.1 G44 Iyo-Miyanoshita 70.0 G45 Muden End of Yodo Line Yosan Line to Matsuyama 76.3 G46 Kita-Uwajima (This section is Yosan Line) 77.8 G47 Uwajima

Trains follow the Shimanto River between Kubokawa and Ekawasaki

Route Description

The Yodo line is a quiet, rural single track line with passing places at some stations. The line, which is also known as Shimanto Green Line, is one of the most scenic in Japan running adjacent to the picturesque Shimanto River inland until Ekawasaki. It then winds its way across Ehime Prefecture to Uwajima.^[2][3]

Yodo Line and the Shimanto River

Kubokawa Station on the Dosan Line serves as the departure point for nearly all trains heading west. The first part of the line, to Kawaoku Junction just after Wakai, is not owned by JR but by the Tosa Kuroshio Railway. This section makes up a part of the Tosa Kuroshio Railway Nakamura Line, not a JR line and therefore attracts an additional fare. Passengers, especially those using the Seishun 18 Kippu, are reminded of this by conductor announcements.^[4]

After Wakai, the Nakamura Line turns off and the Yodo Line officially begins. The Yodo line ends at a junction with the Yosan Line just before Kita-Uwajima and trains continue on the Yosan Line into Uwajima.^[1]

Services

The Yodo Line has only one sort of service, local trains that stop at every station.

In April 2020 there were five trips in each direction between Kubokawa and Uwajima and an additional three trips each way between Uwajima and Ekawasaki & Chikanaga.^[5]

Most services are wanman (driver-only) operated.

Stations

• All trains run through to Kubokawa on the Dosan Line and Uwajima on the Yosan Line.
• All trains on the Yodo Line are local trains and stop at all stations.
• None of the intermediate stations along the line have a staffed ticket office.^[1]
• Trains can pass one another at stations marked "◇" and "^" and cannot pass at those marked "｜".

Station No.	Station	Japanese	Distance (km)		Transfers		Location
			Between stations	From Wakai
TK26	Kubokawa	窪川	-	4.4	Dosan Line (K26)	◇	Shimanto, Takaoka District	Kōchi
Via the Tosa Kuroshio Railway Nakamura Line
TK27 G27	Wakai	若井	4.4	0.0	Tosa Kuroshio Railway Nakamura Line (TK27) (for Nakamura)	｜	Shimanto, Takaoka District	Kōchi
	Kawaoku Junction	川奥信号場	-	(3.6)	Official branch point for Nakamura Line and Yodo Line	◇	Kuroshio, Hata District
G28	Iejigawa	家地川	5.8	5.8		｜	Shimanto, Takaoka District
G29	Utsuigawa	打井川	4.9	10.7		｜
G30	Tosa-Taishō	土佐大正	6.9	17.6		◇
G31	Tosa-Shōwa	土佐昭和	8.9	26.5		｜
G32	Tōkawa	十川	4.5	31.0		｜
G33	Hage	半家	7.9	38.9		｜	Shimanto
G34	Ekawasaki	江川崎	3.8	42.7		◇
G35	Nishigahō	西ヶ方	2.7	45.4		｜
G36	Matsuchi	真土	5.9	51.3		｜	Matsuno, Kitauwa District	Ehime
G37	Yoshinobu	吉野生	1.7	53.0		◇
G38	Matsumaru	松丸	2.3	55.3		｜
G39	Izume	出目	3.5	58.8		｜	Kihoku, Kitauwa District
G40	Chikanaga	近永	1.6	60.4		◇
G41	Fukata	深田	2.1	62.5		｜
G42	Ōuchi	大内	2.9	65.4		｜	Uwajima
G43	Futana	二名	1.5	66.9		｜
G44	Iyo-Miyanoshita	伊予宮野下	2.2	69.1		◇
G45	Muden	務田	0.9	70.0		｜
G46	Kita-Uwajima	北宇和島	6.3	76.3	Yosan Line (U27) (for Matsuyama)	◇
Through to Uwajima via the Yosan Line
G47	Uwajima	宇和島	1.5	77.8		^	Uwajima	Ehime

History

In 1914, the Uji Light Railway Co. opened a 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) gauge line 18 km between Uwajima and Chikanaga.^[6] In 1923, the line was extended 7 km from Chikanaga to Yoshino.^[7] In 1931 the Uwajima Railway began operating a single gasoline-powered locomotive.

The Uwajima Railway was nationalised by Japanese Government Railways in 1933, becoming the Uwajima Line; Miyanoshita Station was renamed Iyo-Miyanoshita Station, Nakano became Futana, and Yoshino was renamed Yoshinobu.^[8]

Yodo Line between Tōkawa and Hage Stations

In 1941, the line was re-gauged to 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in), the section between Uwajima and Muden replaced by a new route, Kita-Uwajima became the line's starting point and Takagushi and Mitsuma stations on the old section were closed.^[9]

The 10 km Yoshinobu - Ekawasaki section opened in 1953, and the 43 km Ekawasaki - Wakai section opened in 1974, linking to the Dosan Line with the line renamed as the Yodo Line. In the same year, CTC signalling was commissioned, and freight operations ceased.^{[citation needed]}