The Seikan Tunnel is a 53.85 km (33.46 mi) dual-gauge railway tunnel in Japan, with a 23.3 km (14.5 mi) portion under the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait, which separates Aomori Prefecture on the main Japanese island of Honshu from the northern island of Hokkaido. The track level is about 100 m (330 ft) below the seabed and 240 m (790 ft) below sea level. The tunnel is part of the standard-gauge Hokkaido Shinkansen and the narrow-gauge Kaikyō Line of the Hokkaido Railway Company 's Tsugaru-Kaikyō Line. The name Seikan comes from combining the on'yomi readings of the first characters of Aomori (青森), the nearest major city on the Honshu side of the strait, and Hakodate (函館), the nearest major city on the Hokkaido side.
Hayate (はやて) is a high-speed Shinkansen service operated in Japan, on the Tōhoku Shinkansen by East Japan Railway Company since 2002 and on the Hokkaido Shinkansen by JR Hokkaido since 26 March 2016. It operates as far as the northern terminus of Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto, and it is the second-fastest service on the Tohoku Shinkansen. These services were inaugurated with the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen extension to Hachinohe on 1 December 2002.
Imabetsu is a town located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan and a part of the Aomori metropolitan area. As of 31 December 2022, the town had an estimated population of 2,311 in 1338 households, and a population density of 18 persons per km2. The total area of the town is 125.27 km2 (48.37 sq mi).
The Kaikyō Line is an 87.8 km (54.6 mi) railway line operated mainly by the Hokkaido Railway Company. The line connected Naka-Oguni Station in Sotogahama, Aomori, through the Seikan Tunnel between Honshu and Hokkaido, to Kikonai Station in Kikonai, Hokkaido. Two stations on the Tsugaru-Kaikyō Line, Tappi-Kaitei Station and Yoshioka-Kaitei Station, were inside the tunnel.
The Hokkaido Shinkansen is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line that links up with the Tōhoku Shinkansen in northern Aomori Prefecture in Honshu and continues on into the interior of Hokkaido through the undersea Seikan Tunnel. Construction started in May 2005; the initial Shin-Aomori to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto section opened on 26 March 2016. The section of the line to Sapporo was scheduled to open by fiscal year 2030, but in December 2024 it was delayed until FY2038. The line is operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company.
Aomori Station is a railway station in the city of Aomori in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. The station has been operating since September 1891, though the most recent station building, which consists of three island platforms connected to the station building by a footbridge, was completed in March 2021. Since 1987 the station has been used by the East Japan Railway Company which operates various services to destinations throughout the Tōhoku region. Since 2010 the station's operations have been jointly run by JR East and the Aoimori Railway Company, a third sector, regional rail operator.
Shin-Aomori Station is a railway station in the city of Aomori, Aomori Prefecture, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company and the Hokkaido Railway Company.
Tsugaru-Futamata Station is a railway station on the East Japan Railway Company Tsugaru Line located in the town of Imabetsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan.
Yoshioka-Kaitei Station was a railway station on the Kaikyo Line in Fukushima, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company. The station was underground and was located within the Seikan Tunnel under the Tsugaru Strait linking the main Japanese island of Honshu with the northern island of Hokkaido. The station was located 149.5 metres (490 ft) below sea level, making it the deepest underground station in the world.
Tappi-Kaitei Station was a railway station on the Kaikyo Line in Sotogahama, Aomori, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company. The station is located within the Seikan Tunnel below the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait linking the main Japanese island of Honshu with the northern island of Hokkaido. It was closed to passengers from November 10, 2013, to make way for the construction of the Hokkaido Shinkansen high-speed train line. It is an emergency escape point.
The Tsugaru-Kaikyō Line was a railway line in northern Japan that linked Aomori Station in Aomori Prefecture and Hakodate Station in Hokkaido.
Hakodate Station is a railway station on the Hakodate Main Line in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company.
The Hakodate Main Line is a railway line connecting the cities of Hakodate and Asahikawa via Sapporo in Hokkaido, Japan. It is one of the trunk lines that is operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company. The Sawara Line, a 35 km (22 mi) loop line from Ōnuma to Mori opened in 1945, is included as part of the Hakodate Main Line.
The Hayabusa is a high-speed Shinkansen service operated by East Japan Railway Company and Hokkaido Railway Company between Tokyo and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto in Japan since 26 March 2016. The name was formerly used for a limited express sleeping car service operated by JR Kyushu, which ran from Tokyo to Kumamoto, and was discontinued in March 2009.
Naka-Oguni Station is a railway station on the Tsugaru Line in the town of Sotogahama, Aomori, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company.
Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station is a railway station on the Hakodate Main Line in Hokuto, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company. The station – rebuilt and very extensively enlarged to serve from March 2016 as the northern terminal of the new Hokkaido Shinkansen – occupies the site of the former Oshima-Ōno Station (渡島大野駅), and is currently the northernmost high-speed Shinkansen railway station in Japan.
Shiriuchi Station was a railway station on the Kaikyo Line in Shiriuchi, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company. Opened in 1990, it closed in March 2014. The undersea Seikan Tunnel to the main Japanese island of Honshu is not far from this station.
The Hamanasu (はまなす) was an overnight express train service in Japan operated by Hokkaido Railway Company, which ran from Aomori to Sapporo via the Tsugaru Line, Kaikyō Line, Esashi Line, Hakodate Main Line, Muroran Main Line, and Chitose Line. The journey took approximately seven and a half hours. Following the withdrawal of the Ginga overnight express service between Tokyo and Osaka in 2008, the Hamanasu became the only locomotive-hauled express service in Japan. The service was discontinued in March 2016 and some cars were donated to the State Railway of Thailand and refurbished as excursion train named Royal Blossom.
The Tsugaru Kaikyō Ferry is a privately owned ferry service crossing the Tsugaru Strait, which separates Hokkaido from Honshu. The ferries run three routes: Hakodate to Aomori and Hakodate to Ōma, Muroran to Aomori.
The Aomori metropolitan area, also known as the Tōsei area is a metropolitan region in the Japanese prefecture of Aomori that includes the city of Aomori and its surrounding satellites, Hiranai, Imabetsu, Sotogahama, and Yomogita. The metropolitan area is defined as the Aomori Urban Employment Area by the Statistics Bureau of Japan (SBJ) and the Center for Spatial Information Service of the University of Tokyo.
JR Hokkaido 
Hokkaido Shinkansen 
JR East (Tsugaru-Futamata)
