Kishū Railway Line

Kishu Railway Line
KR301 train at Gobō Station in 2016
Overview
Native name紀州鉄道線
OwnerKishu Railway
LocaleWakayama Prefecture, Japan
Termini
Stations5
Service
Rolling stockKR205, KR301
History
Opened15 June 1931 (1931-06-15)
Technical
Line length2.7 km (1.7 mi)
Number of tracks1
Track gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Legend
JR West Kisei Main Line
0.0
 Gobo
1.5
 Gakumon
1.8
 Kii-Gobō
2.4
 Shiyakusho-mae
2.7
 Nishi-Gobō

The Kishu Railway Line (紀州鉄道線, Kishū Tetsudō-sen) is a railway line in Japan, running from Gobō Station to Nishi-Gobō Station. The railway line is operated by Kishu Railway (紀州鉄道, Kishū Tetsudō), and is also referred to by locals as Kitetsu (紀鉄), which is an abbreviation of the company's name. The railway line is located entirely within Gobō, Wakayama. It is the only remaining private railway line in Wakayama Prefecture that is entirely non-electrified, and is the second-shortest railway line in Japan.

History

The Gobō Rinkō Railway (御坊臨港鉄道, Gobō Rinkō Tetsudō; "Gobō Portside Railway") opened the 1.8 km section from Gobō to Kii-Gobō section on 15 June 1931, extended 0.9 km to Nishi-Gobō on 10 April 1932, and to Hidakagawa on 10 August 1934.

The Gobō Rinkō Railway became the Kishu Railway from 1 January 1973. Shiyakusho-mae and Gakumon were opened on 1 October 1966 and 10 August 1979. The 0.7 km section from Nishi-Gobō to Hidakagawa closed on 1 April 1989. Work began to replace crossties in the line to concrete ones in 2017 following a derail, which was attributed to the old wooden crossties.

In December 2022, a Chinese real estate company bought Kishu Railway, which attempted to close the railway due to its deficit. The railway was unable to raise their fares as nobody in the company were able to write an application to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. As a result, the railway was to be closed by 2026, which did not occur as the company instead opted to transfer the line to a different entity in June 2026.

Operation

Trains stop at all stations along the line. The entire line is single-track, unelectrified, and none of its railway stations have passing loops. The railway depot for the line is located adjacent to Kii-Gobō Station. Most trains are timetabled to allow for onward connections to the Kisei Main Line trains at Gobō.

The railway line is the only line operated by the company, as the company mostly focuses in the real estate and hotel sectors. A Tokyo-based company, which was previously not a railway operator, took over the line in 1973 in order to gain the prestige and trust associated with operating a railway line. The railway is the second shortest railway line in service in Japan, the shortest being the Shibayama Railway.

Station list

Station name Japanese name Distance between stations (km) Total distance (km) Transfers
Gobō 御坊駅 - 0.0 JR West: Kisei Main Line
Gakumon 学門駅 1.5 1.5  
Kii-Gobō 紀伊御坊駅 0.3 1.8  
Shiyakusho-mae 市役所前駅 0.6 2.4  
Nishi-Gobō 西御坊駅 0.3 2.7  

Rolling stock

Diesel railcar KR301, formerly SKR301 [ja] used on the Shigaraki Kohgen Railway in Shiga Prefecture until October 2015 was introduced on the line from 30 January 2016. KR205, formerly SKR205 [ja] entered service on 15 April 2017. As of 2025, these two cars are the only trains operated by the company.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Soiri 2025, p. 165.
  2. ↑ "国立国会図書館デジタルコレクション". dl.ndl.go.jp. Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Terada, Hirokazu (19 January 2013). データブック日本の私鉄 [Databook: Japan's Private Railways] (in Japanese). Japan: Neko Publishing. p. 151. ISBN 978-4-7770-1336-4.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kawashima 2009, p. 111.
  5. ↑ "国立国会図書館デジタルコレクション". dl.ndl.go.jp. Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  6. ↑ "紀州鉄道が脱線、けが人なし　「西日本一短い私鉄」：朝日新聞デジタル". 朝日新聞デジタル (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  7. ↑ hidakashimpo (7 February 2025). "紀州鉄道の枕木交換工事進む – 日高新報" (in Japanese). Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  8. ↑ "鉄道事故調査報告書" (PDF). Japan Transport Safety Board (in Japanese). 25 January 2018.
  9. ↑ "大ピンチ｢紀州鉄道｣2026年中に廃線の可能性も 中国系企業に買収され方針変更､値上げもできず〈再配信〉". 東洋経済オンライン (in Japanese). 11 March 2026. Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  10. ↑ "WBS和歌山放送ニュース". WBS和歌山放送ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  11. ↑ "運賃表・時刻表｜紀州鉄道". kishu-railway.com (in Japanese). 13 March 2021. Archived from the original on 21 September 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  12. ↑ "赤字鉄道部門 紀州鉄道なぜ存続させるか？ホテルリゾートで知られる企業 社長に聞いた". 乗りものニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  13. ↑ "日本一短いローカル私鉄「紀州鉄道」が赤字なのに走り続ける"意外過ぎる"ワケ（2020年3月16日）" (in Japanese). MBS NEWS. 1 April 2020. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  14. ↑ "意外な子会社 紀州鉄道｜不動産業の「逆転の発想」 - M＆A Online - M&Aをもっと身近に。". maonline.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  15. ↑ "紀州鉄道が廃線!? 中国系企業が買収「広告看板」の鉄道は要らない? | マイナビニュース". news.mynavi.jp (in Japanese). 23 November 2025. Retrieved 25 November 2025.
  16. ↑ 紀州鉄道でKR301が営業運転を開始 [KR301 enters service on Kishu Railway]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  17. ↑ "紀州鉄道の新車両がデビュー - 日高新報 Web Hidaka". www.hidakashimpo.co.jp. Archived from the original on 24 May 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2026.

Bibliography