The Kagoshima Main Line (鹿児島本線, Kagoshima-honsen) is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) between Mojikō in Kitakyushu, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu. Until March 13, 2004, it extended 393km (244mi) between its two termini; however, with the opening of the Kyushu Shinkansen on 13 March, the section between Yatsushiro and Sendai was transferred to the third-sector Hisatsu Orange Railway Company. The line is important within Kyushu, as it connects Fukuoka (Hakata Station) 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.
Operations
Rapid Service
Rapid Service (快速, Kaisoku) operates mainly during the morning and evening rush hours, as well as at night, between Mojikō and Arao. Some trains stop at Takeshita and Sasabaru during the morning rush hour. On weekends and holidays, some trains also stop at Space World (Space World Station).
Regional Rapid Service
Regional Rapid Service (区間快速, Kukan-kaisoku) operates between Mojikō and Yatsushiro. Each train has a designated "rapid section", where it makes the same stops as the Rapid Service trains.
Local
Trains stop at all passenger stations.
Stations
From Mojikō to Hakata
Stopping patterns:
Local trains stop at all passenger stations.
Rapid Service and Regional Rapid Service:
●: All trains stop.
| : All trains pass.
★ : Trains outside the rapid section stop.
＊ : Some trains stop on weekends and holidays.
▼ : All trains stop except the Regional Rapid Service bound for Hakata, departing from Kokura at 6:45.
▽ : Only the Regional Rapid Service bound for Hakata, departing from Kokura at 6:45 stops.
■ Nippō Main Line Kagoshima City Tram Dai-Ikki Line
∨
Kagoshima Freight Terminal
History
The Okura line arch bridge remains after over 100 years since the line closedChikugogawa Bridge on the Saga line in 1981The heritage listed Chikugogawa Bridge on the Saga lineKumamoto Light RailwaySatsuma Nagano station on the Miyanojo line, a reversing (or dead end) line arrangement
The Kyushu Railway opened the 197km Mojiko - Hakata - Kumamoto section between 1889 and 1891, extended the line south to Yatsushiro by 1896 and the company was nationalised in 1907.
At the southern end the line from Kagoshima to Hayato (now part of the Nippo Main Line) opened as part of the Hisatsu Line in 1901. The Hayato to Yoshimatsu section of the Hisatsu line opened in 1903, the Yatsushiro to Hitoyoshi section opened in 1908, and the Hitoyoshi to Yoshimatsu section in 1909, providing the original connection from Kagoshima to Yatsushiro.
The Kagoshima to Sendai line opened between 1913 and 1914, and the Sendai to Yatsushiro section opened between 1922 and 1927, at which time this route replaced the Hisatsu Line to become the southern part of the Kagoshima Main Line.[citation needed]
The Moji to Kokura section was double-tracked in 1897. The 14km Kokura to Kurosaki section (on a new alignment to the west of the original line) opened in 1908, and was completed to Hakata by 1913. The line was double-tracked south of Hakata to Tosu between 1917 and 1921, with Tosu to Hizen Asahi opening 1934, and to Kurume in 1942.[citation needed]
The next section to Araki was double-tracked in 1961, to Kumamoto in 1968 and Yatsushiro in 1970. The Yunoura to Tsunagi section was double-tracked between 1966 and 1968. The line was double-tracked from Kagoshima to Higashichiki between 1969 and 1980.[citation needed]
Former connecting lines
The original Kokura to Kurosaki alignment avoided the coastline due to the Japanese army expressing concern at the vulnerability of a coastal route to enemy naval gunfire.[citation needed] A 3km "Kokura Bypass" line (junctioning 2km north of Kokura) to the Nippo Main Line was opened in 1903 for the same reason. However, following Japan's success in the 1904 Russo-Japanese War, this concern diminished and the Kokura to Kurosaki section was rebuilt (and duplicated) on a new easier (though 3km longer) alignment to the west of the original line in 1908. The original 11km section was then renamed the Okura Line and operated until 1911, when it closed together with the Kokura Bypass line.[citation needed]
Ongagawa Station: An 11km line to Muroki operated between 1908 and 1985. A 6km 762mm (2ft6in) gauge line to Nishiashiya operated from 1915 to 1932. The Ashiya airfield was occupied by the USAF in 1945, and a 1,067mm (3ft6in) gauge line was built on the formation of the 762mm gauge line to serve the airfield in 1947. Trains were mixed (i.e. freight wagons with a passenger car attached) and only available to US military personnel until 1950. The Korean War extended the use of the airfield by the USAF, and the line closed in 1961.[citation needed]
Yoshizuka Station: A 14km line to Chikuzenkatsuta opened between 1918 and 1919, hauling coal until the mine closed in 1965. The line closed in 1985.[citation needed]
Futsukaichi Station: A 26km light railway to Amagi operated between 1908 and 1940.[citation needed]
Hainuzuka Station: The 20km Yabe Line to Kuroki opened as a 915mm (3ft) gauge line in 1903, closing in 1940. The line was rebuilt as a 1,067mm gauge line in 1945. Freight services ceased in 1978, and the line closed in 1985.[citation needed]
Setaka Station: A 24km line to Saga (on the Nagasaki Main Line) opened between 1931 and 1935, and closed in 1987. This line crossed three major watercourses by substantial bridges. The Kyushu Fertiliser Co. operated a 14km line to Nankan from 1921 until 1938. The 8km 915mm (3ft) gauge line to Yanagawa line operated from 1911 until 1932.[citation needed]
Omuta Station: The Mitsui Mining Co. opened a 19km line to Miike-ko coal mine in 1891. Two branch lines, 4 and 3km long, were subsequently opened, closing in 1985 and 1969 respectively.[citation needed] Passenger services ceased in 1984. The majority of the system closed in 1997, when the coal fired power stations at Omuta supplied by the line converted to oil, with a 2km section to Miyaura freight yard remaining to serve a chemical plant.[citation needed]
Arao Station: A 5km line to Midorigaoka, electrified at 500 V DC, operated from 1949 until 1964.[citation needed]
Ueki Station: A 20km line to Yamaga operated from 1917 until 1965.[citation needed]
Kamikumamoto: The 22km 762mm (2ft6in) gauge Kumamoto Light Railway to Otsu opened between 1907 and 1914, with a 2.4km branch to Suizenji. Despite proposals to regauge the line to 1,067mm (3ft6in) gauge and electrify it, the anticipated development of the area did not occur at an acceptable rate and the line was closed in 1921.[citation needed]
Minamata Station: The first section of the Yamano line was opened from Kurino (on the Hisatsu Line) 24km to Yamano in 1921. The 14km Minamata to Kugino section opened in 1934, and the 10km Yamano to Satsuma section the following year. In 1937, the 8km Kugino to Satsuma section, including the Okawa spiral opened. Freight services ceased in 1986, and the line closed in 1988.[citation needed]
Sendai Station: The Kawamiya Railway commenced construction of a line towards Satsumaoguchi (on the Yamano line) in 1917. Construction was suspended in 1921, and the company was nationalised in 1923. Construction (as the Miyanojo Line) recommenced that year, and the 66km line opened in stages between 1924 and 1937, closing in 1987.[citation needed]
Kami Ijuin Station: The Kagoshima Prefectural Government opened a 50km line to Makurazaki between 1914 and 1931. The JR Ibusuki Makurazaki Line connected when it opened in 1963. The line was closed in 1984 following landslides caused by torrential rain. It had two branch lines: the 16km Ata to Chiran line opened between 1927 and 1930, and closed by landslides in 1965; and the 3km Kaseda to Satsuma Man-sei line operated between 1916 and 1962.[citation needed]
References
↑Kinoshita, Kenji (2025-12-25). 「JR貝塚」駅名決定! 鹿児島本線千早～箱崎間の新駅、2027年開業へ["JR Kaizuka" station name decided! New station between Chihaya and Hakozaki on the Kagoshima Main Line to open in 2027]. Mynavi News (in Japanese). Retrieved 2025-12-26.
↑Free, Dan (2008). Early Japanese Railways 1853–1914: Engineering Triumphs That Transformed Meiji-era Japan. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN978-4805310069.
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