Yamanote line

Yamanote line
Series E235 of the Yamanote line
Route length:	34.5 km
Gauge :	1067 mm ( cape track )
Power system :	1500 V  =
Top speed:	90 km / h
Legend 0.0 Shinagawa (品 川) 2.0 Ōsaki (大 崎) 2.9 Gotanda (五 反 田) 4.1 Meguro (目 黒) 5.6 Ebisu (恵 比 寿) 7.2 Shibuya (渋 谷) 8.4 Harajuku (原宿) 9.9 Yoyogi (代 々 木) 10.6 Shinjuku (新宿) 11.9 Shin-Ōkubo (新 大 久保) 13.3 Takadanobaba (高田 馬 場) Kanda 14.2 Mejiro (目 白) 15.4 Ikebukuro (池袋) 17.2 Ōtsuka (大 塚) 18.3 Sugamo (巣 鴨) 19.0 Komagome (駒 込) 20.6 Tabata (田 端) 21.4 Nishi-Nippori (西 日暮 里) 21.9 Nippori (日暮 里) 23.0 Uguisudani (鶯 谷) 24.1 Ueno (上 野) 24.7 Okachimachi (御 徒 町) 25.7 Akihabara (秋葉原) 26.4 Kanda (神 田) 27.7 Tōkyō (東京) 28.5 Yūrakuchō (有 楽 町) 29.6 Shimbashi (新橋) 30.8 Hamamatsuchō (浜 松 町) 32.3 Tamachi (田 町) 33.6 Takanawa Gateway (高 輪 ゲ ー ト ウ ェ イ) 34.5 Shinagawa (品 川)

The Yamanote Line ( Japanese山 手 線, Yamanote-sen ) is one of the most important JR train lines in the Tokyo districts . In 2005, an average of 3.5 million passengers took this line every day (in comparison: roughly as many as all of Berlin's local transport combined). The trademark of the Yamanote line is its line identification color, a light green  ■ . You can find the green as a stripe on all trains of the line, signs, markings and markings of the line in the route map. The coloring of the platforms is also partly based on this green.

It was built between 1885 and 1925, is ring-shaped and connects the main city centers of Tokyo . 667 trains run on it every day . A train has eleven cars and takes between 61 and 65 minutes to cover the 34.5 km long route with 30 stations . With the exception of the Shin-Ōkubo and Mejiro stations , transfers to other train and subway lines are possible at every station.

The Yamanote Line is operated by the East Japan Railway Company and is the most convenient way for tourists (outside of the morning and evening rush hour ) to get to most of the sights in the central city area quickly.

Almost every station has its own melody when the train arrives. Some stations have a melody each for trains that go clockwise (外 回 り, soto-mawari ; "outer circle") and for trains that go counter-clockwise (内 回 り, uchi-mawari ; "inner circle").

Route data

• Route length: 34.5 km
  • Tōkaidō Line (Tokyo - Shinagawa): 4.2 miles / 6.8 km
  • Yamanote Line (Shinagawa - Shinjuku - Tabata): 20.6 km
  • Tōhoku Line (Tabata - Tokyo): 7.1 km
• Track width: 1067 mm
• Number of stations: 30
• Power supply: 1500 V ( direct current )
• Driving time: fastest lap 59 minutes, average 64 minutes
• Double track expansion: entire route
• Electrification: entire route

history

Yamanote in 1925

The Yamanote line was initially built from 1885 as the Shinagawa line from Shinagawa via Shibuya and Shinjuku to Akabane , along the newly emerging districts of the expanding city of Tokyo. It served to create a connection between the Tōhoku main line , which ended in Ueno , and the Tōkaidō main line , which then ended in Shinbashi , and was the first north-south connection in Tokyo.

The upper part of the ring between Ikebukuro and Tabata was completed in 1903 and became known as the Toshima Line ( 豊 島 線 , Toshima-sen ). In 1909 the two lines were merged to form the Yamananote Line and the line was electrified. The circle was not yet closed at this time, the trains ran in conjunction with the trains of the Chūō main line coming from Nakano via the south ring to Tokyo , or coming from the Keihin-Tōhoku line via Shinagawa and then clockwise on the Yamanote- Line to Tabata.

Dense residential development prevented the circle on the eastern north-south axis from being closed. Only after the Great Kantō earthquake was the circular line completed in 1925 with the completion of the last missing section between Kanda and Ueno . A freight line running parallel to the passenger train line was also completed in 1925 and runs on the west side of the district between Shinagawa and Tabata.

Before the outbreak of the Pacific War , the Railway Ministry did not allow private suburban railway companies to cross the Yamanote Line and thus travel from its terminus to the stations of the inner city districts. This policy led to the emergence of new urban centers at the junctions of the Yamanote Line, especially the Ikebukuro and Shinjuku stations (which are now among the largest in the world in terms of passenger numbers).

The current route of the Yamanote Line was established in 1956 when it no longer used the Keihin-Tōhoku Line and instead received its own tracks between Shinagawa and Tabata on the eastern side of the circle. However, trains of the Yamanote line continued to run periodically on the tracks of the Keihin-Tōhoku line, especially during vacations and public holidays, but also outside of rush hour, until 1988 when an express train service was operated on the Keihin-Tōhoku line was introduced.

A major explosion on the Yamanote freight line in Shinjuku in 1967 resulted in the relocation of freight traffic to the more distant Musashino line . Due to serious undercapacity on other lines, the tracks of the freight line were soon used by trains of the Saikyō line and the Shōnan-Shinjuku line . In addition, some of the Narita Express express trains also use the tracks. Furthermore, the Tōhoku main line was extended to Tokyo Station in order to relieve what is now the busiest part of the route, the section heading south between Ueno and Okachimachi.

In 2005 the Yamanote line was used by an average of 3.55 million passengers a day, which corresponds to 1.3 billion passengers per year.

On March 14, 2020, the new Takanawa Gateway Station (高 輪 ゲ ー ト ウ ェ イ) opened between Shinagawa and Tamachi stations . This is the first new stopover on the Yamanote Line since 1971.

Announcements

LC monitor with surveillance camera in a train of the E235 series

The next stop is announced both acoustically and visually. The acoustic announcement consists of a Japanese and English-language announcement of the next stop as well as transfer options and direction of travel. The visual display takes place via LC monitors that are installed above each door. The next station on the route map, the current direction of travel and the travel time to the next stops are displayed here alternately in Japanese and English. In addition, current information such as delays, road works on the route and the like can be displayed here. Sometimes the display is also used to play short commercials. In addition, there are monitors in the area above the seats, which are used exclusively for commercials.

Stations

The line is operated by trains from the depot located between Ōsaki and Shinagawa stations. The counting of the stations therefore starts clockwise at Ōsaki station and counterclockwise at Shinagawa station.

Oddities

The Yamanote Line is probably the most famous railway line in Japan . In Japan, for example, various computer games are offered (including Densha de Go! ) In which trains on the Yamanote line are controlled on a timed basis. There is also a popular drinking game in Japan in which the participants have to list the stations of the Yamanote line one after the other. As soon as someone makes a mistake, they must take a sip of an alcoholic drink as a punishment.

Web links

Commons : Yamanote Line  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Yamanote Line - Hanami Web (English)
• All stations with photos and melodies (English)
• Curiosities and interesting facts about Yamanote (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Toshinari Kuwayama: CIRCLING TOKYO: 60-minute barrier to fall on Yamanote Line. In: Asahi Shimbun. January 25, 2005, accessed February 3, 2008 .  
2. ↑ Comparison of BVG
3. ↑ Comparison of the Berlin S-Bahn
4. ↑ http://www.asahi.com/english/nation/TKY200501250161.html Circling Tokyo: 60-minute barrier to fall on Yamanote Line
5. ↑ https://www.railwaygazette.com/infrastructure/takanawa-gateway-opens/56033.article