Sunrise Seto

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Sunrise Seto

285 series EMU on a Sunrise Seto service, 2019
Overview
Service type	Limited express
Status	Operational
Locale	Japan
Predecessor	Seto
First service	10 July 1998
Current operators	JR East JR Central JR West JR Shikoku
Route
Termini	Tokyo Takamatsu (extended to Kotohira seasonally)
Distance travelled	804.7 km (500 mi)
Average journey time	9 hours, 30 minutes
Service frequency	1 round-trip daily
Train numbers	Westbound: 5031M Eastbound: 5032M
Lines used	Tōkaidō Main Line, Tōkaidō Freight Line, San'yō Main Line, Uno Line, Honshi-Bisan Line, Yosan Line, Dosan Line
On-board services
Seating arrangements	None
Sleeping arrangements	Private compartments/open berths
Catering facilities	Vending machines
Technical
Rolling stock	285 series
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	Overhead line, 1,500 V DC
Operating speed	130 km/h (81 mph)

The Sunrise Seto (Japanese: サンライズ瀬戸, Hepburn: Sanraizu Seto) is an overnight sleeping car train service in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East), Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central), West Japan Railway Company (JR West), and Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku) since July 1998.

Operations

The Sunrise Seto runs daily between Tokyo and Takamatsu in Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, taking 9 hours and 42 minutes eastbound and 10 hours 1 minute westbound across the 804.7 km (500.0 mi) journey. Between Tokyo and Okayama, the service operates in conjunction with the Sunrise Izumo service to Izumoshi. The combined 14-car train departs from Tokyo, and stops at Yokohama, Atami, Numazu, Fuji, Shizuoka, Hamamatsu (final midnight stop), Himeji (first morning stop), and arrives at Okayama, where the train splits, with the Sunrise Izumo half of the train heading to Izumoshi. Between Okayama and Takamatsu, the 7-car Sunrise Seto train stops at Kojima and Sakaide, before arriving in Takamatsu. The return train departs from Takamatsu, and is coupled with the Sunrise Izumo from Izumoshi at Okayama Station, departing together from there, and arriving at Tokyo Station in the next morning.

There are seasonal extended services which Sunrise Seto trains from Tokyo run beyond Takamatsu, to Kotohira on the Dosan Line. These extended service trains run during particular seasons (Differs each year), and during the holidays.

Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto pass through stations in Nagoya and Kyoto without stopping due to the fact that they arrive at these stations around midnight and are unable to play the announcements.

• 
  A Sunrise Seto & Sunrise Izumo combined formation on the Sanyo Main Line, May 2012
• 
  Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto units being uncoupled at Okayama Station, March 2013
• 
  Destination indicator for a Tokyo-bound service

Station list

Sunrise Seto trains also make brief stops at other stations for operational reasons, including crew changes at JR regional boundaries and meets with other trains. Passengers cannot board or alight from the train during these stops.

Regularly, eastbound services will operate between Atami and Yokohama via the Tōkaidō Freight Line, where trains enter the line at Odawara and exit at Chigasaki back to the Tōkaidō Main Line.

Formation

Trains are formed of dedicated 7-car 285 series Sunrise Express electric multiple units (EMUs) owned by both JR Central and JR West.

When operating in the up (Tokyo-bound) direction, the cars are numbered 8 to 14 (cars 1 to 7 are the Sunrise Izumo), with car 14 at the Tokyo end. When operating in the down (Takamatsu-bound) direction, the cars are numbered 1 to 7, with car 7 at the Tokyo end.

• Car 2/9 has a wheelchair-accessible compartment.
• Each car has toilet facilities.
• Smoking is permitted in cabins in car 6/13, and some compartments in car 4/11.

Accommodation, ticketing and facilities

The Sunrise Express services consist of six types of accommodation. There are five types of berths: A single deluxe, B sunrise twin (2-person use), B single twin (1- or 2-person use), B single and B solo. There is also a carpeted sleeping space called the Nobi-nobi sleeping area.

The train has a maximum capacity of 158 people across 146 cabins (assuming all berths are booked), as follows:

Several fares are required to travel on the train. All passengers must pay a basic fare (運賃, unchin) and a limited express surcharge (特急料金, tokkyū ryōkin) which is based on the distance traveled and varies seasonally.

Passengers using a private room must also pay a berth fee (寝台料金, shindai ryōkin), while those using the Nobi-nobi sleeping area must pay a seat reservation charge (座席指定料金, zaseki shitei ryōkin) to reserve an individual sleeping space.

Berth and seat reservation charges are fixed regardless of the distance traveled. "B sunrise twin" cabins are sold as a unit and require payment of the full berth fee and two limited express surcharges, even when occupied by only a single passenger.

Tickets can be purchased up to one month before departure at a Midori no Madoguchi. Holders of the Japan Rail Pass can reserve a Nobi-nobi space without an additional charge.

A shower is located in car 3/10. Passengers using the single deluxe compartments receive a free shower card, while other passengers can purchase a six-minute shower card. The cards are not assigned to specific time slots, but only a limited quantity are available. Mini-lounge areas in car 3/10 has a bench and table with four seats on each side of the train. Drink vending machines are available in cars 3/10 and 5/12.

• 
  "A single deluxe" compartment
• 
  Car 4/11 corridor
• 
  "B single" berth
• 
  "B single twin" berth
• 
  Nobi-nobi sleeping areas (car 5/12, upper floor)
• 
  Nobi-nobi sleeping areas (car 5/12, lower floor)
• 
  Shower (car 3/10)
• 
  Lounge area (car 3/10)

History

The Sunrise Seto services were introduced together with the Sunrise Izumo on 10 July 1998. Previously, the Seto operated as a separate "Blue train" service connecting Tokyo with Takamatsu. The Sunrise Izumo was intended to attract more passengers to train transportation by introducing newly designed trains and by reducing the journey time.

Ridership on overnight trains in Japan continues to decline, and from March 2009, the Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto became the only overnight sleeping car trains to operate west of Tokyo via the Tokaido Line.

From the start of the revised timetable on 12 March 2021, the departure time of the Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto from Tokyo was changed from 10:00 PM to 9:50 PM. It is the first time that the departure time was changed since the services' introduction in 1998. The change cleared the 10:00 PM departure slot for one of the new Shōnan limited express services to Odawara.

See also

• Sunrise Izumo
• Seto (train), the blue train predecessor to the Sunrise Seto
• List of named passenger trains of Japan

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sunrise Seto.

• JR West Sunrise Izumo / Sunrise Seto (in Japanese)