This article is about the subway system operating under the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. For the subway system operating under the Tokyo Metro Co., see Tokyo Metro. For the whole subway network in Tokyo, see Tokyo subway.
It is the one of Tokyo's two subway operators, with an average daily ridership of 2.85 million; the other operator, the Tokyo Metro, carries approximately 6.52 million passengers per day, as of 2023. The subway has run at a financial loss for most of its history due to high construction expenses, particularly for the Oedo Line. However, it reported its first net profit of ¥3.13bn ($26.9 mil) in FY2006.
Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway form completely separate networks. While users of prepaid rail passes can freely interchange between the two networks, regular ticket holders must purchase a second ticket, or a special transfer ticket, to change from a Toei line to a Tokyo Metro line and vice versa. The sole exceptions are on the segment of the Toei Mita Line between Meguro and Shirokane-Takanawa, where the platforms are shared with the Tokyo Metro Namboku Line, and at Kudanshita on the Shinjuku Line, where the platform is shared with the Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line. At these stations, it is possible to change between the networks without passing through a ticket gate. It is one of only two rapid transit systems operating on 3 track gauges, the other being the Barcelona Metro, Spain, using narrow, standard and broad gauge.
History
In 1920, Tokyo City, the administrative predecessor of today’s 23 special wards, announced its first formal subway development proposal through Tokyo City Notification No. 2 of 1920 (大正9年東京市告示第2号), designating seven routes. Consistent with the city’s broader policy of public ownership and operation of urban transportation, the network was intended to be constructed and managed municipally.[5][6] However, the Great Kantō Earthquake struck on September 1, 1923, inflicting catastrophic damage on central Tokyo and altering the city’s urban and transportation planning priorities.[7]
In 1925, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued Ministry of Home Affairs Notification No. 56 of 1925 (大正14年内務省告示第56号), which formally designated five routes.[8][9] Under this framework, Tokyo City obtained operating licenses for four of the five proposed subway lines. However, burdened by substantial public debt in the aftermath of earthquake reconstruction, the city faced strong opposition from both the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Finance. As a result, Tokyo City was unable to secure final approval to commence construction, effectively halting its municipal subway plans.[8]
At the time, the only subway line, now known as the Ginza Line, was constructed and operated separately by two private companies, the Tokyo Underground Railway and the Tokyo Rapid Railway, with through services between the two operators.[10]
After the outbreak of World War II, the Japanese government integrated these two companies in 1941 to form the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (TRTA), commonly known as Eidan, which later became the predecessor of today's Tokyo Metro.
In Tokyo during the 1950s, post–World War II economic expansion led to rapid population growth and a sharp increase in road traffic. As a result, the effectiveness of existing public transport infrastructure, such as the Tokyo Toden (tram) system, steadily declined due to chronic road congestion, while the existing Teito Rapid Transit Authority subway network alone was unable to keep pace with rising transportation demand.[11][12]
In 1954, the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly adopted a resolution to construct a public subway system in addition to the network operated by the Teito Rapid Transit Authority. In accordance with urban planning directives, the Tokyo Metropolitan government Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation and Keikyu corporation obtained a license from the Teito Rapid Transit Authority to build its first line between Kuramae and Magome, and began construction of the line as part of the Toei Subway system in 1958.[4][11]
Since the Toei Subway began operations on the Asakusa Line between Asakusabashi and Oshiage in 1960, with through services to the Keisei Line, the system has expanded steadily, with the opening of the Mita Line in December 1968, the Shinjuku Line in December 1978, and the Ōedo Line in December 1991. The Mita Line was extended between Meguro and Mita stations, and the Ōedo Line entered full operation.
Lines
The Toei Subway is made up of four lines operating on 109.0 kilometers (67.7mi) of route.[1]
↑Line numbers are only used internally and are not listed on subway maps
Through services to other lines
The different gauges of the Toei lines arose in part due to the need to accommodate through services with private suburban railway lines. Through services currently in regular operation include:
According to the company, an average of 2.34 million people used the company's four subway routes each day in 2008. The company made a profit of ¥12.2 billion in 2009.[14]
JFY2023 Toei Subway Line Revenue and Ridership[15]
Icons of four lines, as the system consists of four lines, compared with Tokyo Metro’s nine.
Apart from its own logo, a stylized ginkgo leaf used as the symbol of the Tokyo Metropolis, Toei Subway shares a design language in common with Tokyo Metro. Lines are indicated by a letter in Futura Bold on a white background inside a roundel in the line color, with signs indicating stations adding the station number as well. Line colors and letter-designations are complementary with Tokyo Metro's, with none overlapping (e.g., the Mita Line's letter-designation is “I”, rather than “M”, which is used by the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line).
Informational signage is also designed identically, with platform-level station placards differing only in the placement of the bands in the line color: Toei Subway has two thin bands at the top and bottom, while Tokyo Metro has one wider band at the bottom (or, in the case of long, narrow placards, in a continuous band extending to the left and right along the wall itself).
There are a total of 99 unique stations (i.e., counting stations served by multiple lines only once) on the Toei Subway network, or 106 total stations if each station on each line counts as one station.[1] Almost all stations are located within the 23 special wards, with many located in areas not served by the complementary Tokyo Metro network.
Underground passage stairs at Toei Subway Iidabashi Station, equipped with wire-frame lighting.
The platform at Akabanebashi Station features glass blocks and tiles made in Italy embedded in the walls.
12345678910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.
↑"令和4年度 地下鉄路線別収支状況"[FY2023 Revenue and expenditure by subway line](PDF). Toei Transportation Online (in Japanese). Archived(PDF) from the original on 28 May 2025. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
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