This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(July 2015) |
| Hisatsu Orange Railway Line | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Hisatsu Orange Railway 100 series train | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Hisatsu Orange Railway Co., Ltd. (肥薩おれんじ鉄道株式会社, Hisatsu Orenji Tetsudō Kabushiki-gaisha) is a third-sector railway company which operates Hisatsu Orange Railway Line in Kumamoto and Kagoshima prefectures. The line follows the former part of the JR Kyushu Kagoshima Main Line that connected Yatsushiro and Sendai in Kumamoto and Kagoshima Prefectures, known historically as Higo and Satsuma Provinces. The length of the line is 116.9 km.
Hisatsu Orange Railway went into service on March 13, 2004, when ownership was transferred from JR and the high speed Kyushu Shinkansen service began. The Hisatsu Orange Railway runs close to the Yatsushiro Sea and East China Sea and connects to the Kagoshima Main Line on both ends. The route is indirect and winding, but connects several cities along the coast.
Although the line is electrified and used by electric freight trains, due to budgetary limitations passenger service is provided by diesel railcars.
Shareholders in the railway include prefectures of Kumamoto and Kagoshima, cities of Yatsushiro, Minamata, Izumi, Akune and Satsumasendai, towns of Tsunagi and Ashikita, and the Japan Freight Railway Company.
The Sendai–Yatsushiro section was built by the (then) Japanese Imperial Railway and opened between 1922 and 1927, at which time this route replaced the Hisatsu Line to become the southern part of the Kagoshima Main Line.
The Yunoura–Tsunagi section was duplicated between 1966 and 1968. CTC signalling was commissioned from Yatsushiro–Sendai in 1969/70, and the line was electrified in 1970.
In 2004, following the opening of the Kagoshima–Shin Yatsushiro section of the Kyushu Shinkansen, operation of the section was transferred under the Third Sector arrangements.
Minamata Station: The first section of the Yamano line was opened from Kurino (on the Hisatsu Line) 24 km to Yamano in 1921. The 14 km Minamata–Kugino section opened in 1934, and the 10 km Yamato–Satsuma section the following year. In 1937 the 8 km Kugino–Satsuma section, including the Okawa spiral opened. Freight services ceased in 1986, and the line closed in 1988.
JR Freight operates Hisatsu Orange Railway Line as a Category-2 operator.
| No. | Station | Distance (km) | Rapid Express Super Orange | Rapid Express Ocean Liner Satsuma | Connections | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kagoshima Main Line | Kumamoto Prefecture | Yatsushiro | ||||||
| through to | Kumamoto | |||||||
| Shin-Yatsushiro | 新八代 | 2.8 | | | Kyushu Shinkansen, Kagoshima Main Line | ||||
| Hisatsu Orange Railway Line | ||||||||
| OR01 | Yatsushiro | 八代 | 0.0 | ● | Kagoshima Main Line, Hisatsu Line (Ebi-no-kōgen Line) | |||
| OR02 | Higo Kouda | 肥後高田 | 4.8 | | | ||||
| OR03 | Hinagu Onsen | 日奈久温泉 | 10.1 | ● | ||||
| OR04 | Higo Futami | 肥後二見 | 13.7 | | | ||||
| OR05 | Kami Tanoura | 上田浦 | 18.0 | | | Ashikita | |||
| OR06 | Tanoura Otachimisaki Park | たのうら御立岬公園 | 22.1 | | | ||||
| OR07 | Higo Tanoura | 肥後田浦 | 23.6 | | | ||||
| OR08 | Uminoura | 海浦 | 26.7 | | | ||||
| OR09 | Sashiki | 佐敷 | 29.8 | ● | ||||
| OR10 | Yunoura | 湯浦 | 33.7 | | | ||||
| OR11 | Tsunagi | 津奈木 | 42.4 | | | Tsunagi | |||
| OR12 | Shin-Minamata | 新水俣 | 45.8 | | | Kyushu Shinkansen | Minamata | ||
| OR13 | Minamata | 水俣 | 49.6 | ● | ||||
| OR14 | Fukuro | 袋 | 55.4 | | | ||||
| OR15 | Komenotsu | 米ノ津 | 61.3 | | | Kagoshima Prefecture | Izumi | ||
| OR16 | Izumi | 出水 | 65.6 | ● | ● | Kyushu Shinkansen | ||
| OR17 | Nishi-Izumi | 西出水 | 68.3 | | | ||||
| OR18 | Takaono | 高尾野 | 72.1 | ● | ||||
| OR19 | Nodagou | 野田郷 | 75.3 | ● | ||||
| OR20 | Origuchi | 折口 | 80.7 | | | Akune | |||
| OR21 | Akune | 阿久根 | 86.2 | ● | ||||
| OR22 | Ushinohama | 牛ノ浜 | 92.2 | | | ||||
| OR23 | Satsuma Ohkawa | 薩摩大川 | 95.7 | | | ||||
| OR24 | Nishikata | 西方 | 99.6 | | | Satsumasendai | |||
| OR25 | Satsuma Taki | 薩摩高城 | 102.3 | | | ||||
| OR26 | Kusamichi | 草道 | 107.3 | | | ||||
| OR27 | Kami Sendai | 上川内 | 113.7 | ● | ||||
| OR28 | Sendai | 川内 | 116.9 | ● | Kyushu Shinkansen, Kagoshima Main Line | |||
| through to | Kagoshima-Chūō | |||||||
Hisatsu Orange Railway's Orange 18 Free Kippu , priced at 2100 yen, is sold to customers carrying JR's corresponding Seishun 18 Kippu.
The Kagoshima Main Line is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company between Mojikō in Kitakyushu, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu. Until March 13, 2004, it extended 393 km (244 mi) between its two termini; however, with the opening of the Kyushu Shinkansen on March 13, the section between Yatsushiro and Sendai was transferred to the third-sector Hisatsu Orange Railway Company. The line is an important line in Kyushu, connecting Fukuoka to many other major cities. It is the main line through the Fukuoka urban district, and as such many long-distance express trains from all parts of Kyushu use the section between Kokura Station (Kitakyushu) and Tosu Station, where the Nagasaki Main Line meets the Kagoshima Main Line.
Shin-Yatsushiro Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the city of Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu.
The Hisatsu Line is a railway line in Kyushu, Japan, operated by the Kyushu Railway Company. It connects Yatsushiro on the Kagoshima Main Line to Hayato station, Kirishima on the Nippo Main Line. From 1909 the line was the original rail connection from Yatsushiro to Kagoshima until the Yatsushiro – Kagoshima coastal route via Sendai opened in 1927.
Shin-Minamata Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the city of Minamata, Kumamoto, Japan. It is operated by Kyushu Railway Company and by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Izumi Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Izumi, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is jointly operated by JR Kyushu and the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Sendai Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Ichikikushikino, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu and the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Yatsushiro Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the city of Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu and the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway. It is also a freight depot for the Japan Freight Railway Company.
Nishi-Izumi Station is a passenger railway station located in Izumi, Kagoshima, Japan.is a passenger railway station located in the city of Izumi, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the It is operated by third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Minamata Station is a passenger railway station in the city of Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Fukuro Station is a passenger railway station in the city of Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Akune Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Akune, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the It is operated by third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Nishikata Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Yunoura Station is a passenger railway station in the town of Agukita, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Uminoura Station is a passenger railway station in the town of Agukita, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Higo Tanoura Station is a passenger railway station in the town of Agukita, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Higo Kouda Station is a passenger railway station in the city of Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Higo-Futami Station is a passenger railway station in the city of Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Tsunagi Station is a passenger railway station in the town of Tsunagi, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway
Ushinohama Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Akune, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is served by the It is operated by third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.
Kami Sendai Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.