Toei Asakusa Line

Last updated
Toei Asakusa Line
Toei Asakusa line symbol.svg
Toei-Type5522-1.jpg
A Toei Asakusa Line 5500 series train
Overview
Other name(s)A
Native name浅草線
Owner Symbol of Tokyo Metropolis.svg Toei Subway
Line number1
LocaleTokyo
Termini
Stations20
Color on map
  • Salmon (#EC6E65)
  • Rose (#EF5BA1) (Also used)
Service
TypeHeavy rail
System Tokyo subway
Operator(s)Toei Subway
Depot(s)Magome
Daily ridership718,855 (FY2016) [1]
History
Opened4 December 1960;62 years ago (1960-12-04)
Technical
Line length18.3 km (11.4 mi)
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Minimum radius 161 m (528 ft)
Electrification 1,500 V DC (overhead catenary)
Operating speed70 km/h (43 mph)
Signalling Automatic closed block
Train protection system C-ATS
Maximum incline 3.5%
Route map

Tokyo subway map black fixed grey asakusa.PNG

Contents

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Shibayama-Chiyoda
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Narita Airport Terminal 1
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BSicon tBHF.svg
Higashi-Narita
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BSicon STR.svg
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BSicon STRr.svg
BSicon STR.svg
BSicon BHF.svg
Keisei Narita
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BSicon STR.svg
Imba Nihon-idai
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BSicon ABZg+r.svg
BSicon BHF.svg
Keisei-Takasago
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Aoto
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BSicon utBHF.svg
Oshiage
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Nihombashi
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Tokyo
Proposed
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Shimbashi
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Sengakuji
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BSicon utABZgr.svg
BSicon BHF.svg
BSicon utSTR.svg
Shinagawa
BSicon STR.svg
BSicon utBHF.svg
Gotanda
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BSicon uKBHFe.svg
Nishi-magome
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Keikyū Kamata
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BSicon STRq.svg
BSicon tSTR+r.svg
BSicon STR.svg
BSicon FLUG.svg
BSicon tKBHFe.svg
Haneda Airport Domestic Terminal
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Yokohama
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Horinouchi
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Misakiguchi

The Toei Asakusa Line (都営地下鉄浅草線, Toei Chikatetsu Asakusa-sen) is a subway line in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the municipal subway operator Toei Subway. The line runs between Nishi-magome in Ōta and Oshiage in Sumida. The line is named after the Asakusa district, a cultural center of Tokyo, under which it passes.

The Asakusa Line was the first subway line in Japan to offer through services with a private railway. Today, it has more through services to other lines than any other subway line in Tokyo. Keikyu operates through trains on the Keikyu Main Line to Misakiguchi and the Keikyu Airport Line to Haneda Airport Domestic Terminal . The Keisei Electric Railway operates through trains on the Keisei Oshiage Line to Inba-Nihon-Idai and the Keisei Main Line to Narita Airport Terminal 1, and the Shibayama Railway runs trains via the Keisei Main Line and the Shibayama Railway Line to Shibayama-Chiyoda. Via its through services with Keisei and Keikyu, the Asakusa line is the only train line that offers a direct connection between Tokyo's two main airports.

The Asakusa Line is often split into two routes: Oshiage–Sengakuji and Sengakuji–Nishi-magome; only some trains make all station stops on the line, as many trains travel on the Keikyu Main Line south of Sengakuji.

On maps and signboards, the line is shown in the color rose. Stations carry the letter "A" followed by a two-digit number inside a more reddish vermilion circle.

Services

Station list

No.StationJapaneseDistance (km)Airport Ltd. Exp./Access Exp.TransfersLocation
Between
stations
From Nishi-magome
A01 Nishi-magome 西馬込0.0 Keikyu Main Line
Through to Keikyu Airport Line
  Ōta
A02 Magome 馬込1.21.2 
A03 Nakanobu 中延0.92.1OM Ōimachi Line (OM04) Shinagawa
A04 Togoshi 戸越1.13.2IK Ikegami Line (Togoshi-ginza Station: IK03)
A05 Gotanda 五反田1.64.8
A06 Takanawadai 高輪台0.75.5  Minato
Keikyu through services:To/from Haneda Airport Terminal 1·2 via the KK Keikyū Main Line and KK Keikyū Airport Line
From Zushi·Hayama via the KK Keikyū Zushi Line (northbound only)
From Uraga via the KK Keikyū Main Line (northbound only; southbound trains for KK Keikyū Kurihama Line via Horinouchi)
To/from Misakiguchi via the KK Keikyū Main Line and KK Keikyū Kurihama Line
A07 Sengakuji 泉岳寺 [* 1] 1.46.9
Minato
A08 Mita 三田1.18.0
A09 Daimon 大門1.59.5
A10 Shimbashi 新橋1.010.5
A11 Higashi-ginza 東銀座0.911.4H Hibiya Line (H-10)
Underground passage to Ginza, Hibiya and Yūrakuchō stations
Chūō
A12 Takaracho 宝町0.812.2 
A13 Nihombashi 日本橋0.813.0
A14 Ningyocho 人形町0.813.8
A15 Higashi-nihombashi 東日本橋0.714.5
A16 Asakusabashi 浅草橋0.715.2JB Chūō-Sōbu Line (JB20) Taitō
A17 Kuramae 蔵前0.715.9E Ōedo Line (E-11)
A18 Asakusa 浅草0.916.8
A19 Honjo-azumabashi 本所吾妻橋0.717.5  Sumida
A20 Oshiage
(SKYTREE)
押上
(スカイツリー前) [* 2]
0.818.3
Through Services via the KS Keisei Oshiage Line To/from Narita Airport Terminal 1 via the KS Keisei Main Line
To/from Narita Airport Terminal 1 via the KS Keisei Main Line and KS Narita Sky Access Line
To/from Imba-Nihon-Idai via the KS Keisei Main Line and HS Hokusō Line
To/from Shibayama-Chiyoda via the KS Keisei Main Line, KS Keisei Higashi-Narita Line, and SR Shibayama Railway
  1. Sengakuji is shared by both Keikyu Corporation and Toei; Toei manages the station.
  2. Oshiage is shared by both Keisei Electric Railway and Toei; Keisei Electric Railway manages the station.

Rolling stock

A variety of rolling stock is in use due to the large number of through service operators on the line, all of which use standard gauge tracks and 1,500 V DC electrification via overhead lines. Currently, six operators run trains onto the Asakusa Line, the most of any Tokyo subway line, and the line is unique as the only subway line in Tokyo with through services onto standard gauge railways (all other through services are with narrow gauge lines).

Toei

Keisei Electric Railway

Keikyu

Hokuso Railway

Chiba New Town Railway

Shibayama Railway

Former rolling stock

History

The Toei Asakusa Line was the first subway line constructed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The line number is Line 1, because it was technically the first subway line in Tokyo to be planned in the 1920s as an underground route connecting the Keikyu and Keisei Electric Railway via Shinagawa, eventually allowing for through trains between these two railways. In its original plan form, the line would have actually bypassed Asakusa Station entirely. However, the plan was changed to take advantage of the existing Tobu Isesaki Line (section now named as the Tobu Skytree Line) and Tokyo Metro Ginza Line connections at Asakusa.

Construction of this line began on 27 August 1956 after years of delays, and the initial 3.2 km (2.0 mi) segment between Oshiage and Asakusabashi opened on 4 December 1960. The line then opened in stages from north to south:

The line was named Asakusa Line on 1 July 1978. [3]

From 1998 to 2002, the Asakusa Line was used as part of a rail connection between Tokyo's two major airports, Haneda and Narita. While a few trains still run between the airports, the service has greatly diminished in frequency since 2002.[ citation needed ]

In 2005, a research group of government, metropolitan and railway company officials proposed that the Asakusa Line be connected to Tokyo Station via a spur to the north of Takarachō Station. This would provide Tokyo Station's first direct connection to the Toei subway network. It would also make it possible to reach Haneda Airport in 25 minutes (versus 35 minutes today) and Narita Airport in 40 minutes (versus 57 minutes today). [4] This plan has yet to be finalized or formally adopted. Authorities are re-considering a similar plan as part of the infrastructure improvements for the 2020 Summer Olympics; the proposed line would cut travel time to Haneda from 30 minutes to 18 minutes, and to Narita from 55 minutes to 36 minutes, at a total cost of around 400 billion yen. [5]

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References

  1. 東京都交通局ホーム – 経営情報 – 交通局の概要 – 都営地下鉄 [Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation Home – Management Information – Overview of the Department of Transportation – Toei Subway] (in Japanese). 東京都交通局 [Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation]. April 1, 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-17.
  2. 東京都交通局,ピックアップ情報,「ありがとう5300形 都営まるごときっぷ」を限定発売 [Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation announces "Thank you 5300 series"]. Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation (in Japanese). 7 March 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  3. "都営交通のあらまし2020" [Toei Transportation Summary 2020](PDF). Toei Transportation Online (in Japanese). Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  4. 都営浅草線東京駅接着等の事業化推進に関する検討 調査結果のとりまとめ Archived 2007-08-24 at the Wayback Machine , May 2003.
  5. "羽田・成田発着を拡大、五輪へインフラ整備急ぐ" [Race to increase slots at Haneda & Narita and build infrastructure for Olympics]. Nihon Keizai Shimbun. Nikkei Inc. 10 September 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2013.