Gotemba Line
Asagiri (now Mt. Fuji) limited express trains pass at Yaga Station, April 2008
Overview
Owner	JR Central
Termini	Kōzu Numazu
Stations	19
Color on map	Olive (#477543)
Service
Type	Passenger/freight
Operator(s)	JR Central JR Freight
Rolling stock	313 series 211 series Odakyu 60000 series MSE
History
Opened	1 February 1889 (1889-02-01)
Technical
Line length	60.2 km (37.4 mi)
Number of tracks	Entirely single-track
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	1,500 V DC (overhead line)
Operating speed	110 km/h (68 mph)
Train protection system	ATS-PT
Maximum incline	2.5%
Route map

Gotemba Line
Tōkaidō Main Line 0.0 Kōzu Station Kōzu Yard ↑JR East /↓JR Central Tōkaidō Shinkansen Odawara-Atsugi Road 3.8 Shimo-Soga Station 6.5 Kami-Ōi Station 8.3 Sagami-Kaneko Station Kawaotogawa Odakyū Odawara Line Shin-Matsuda Station 10.2 Matsuda Station 13.1 Higashi-Yamakita Station 15.9 Yamakita Station Sakawa River Bridge No.1 Sakawa River Bridge No.2 Sakawa River Bridge No.3 Tōmei Expressway 20.0 Yaga Station Tōmei Expressway Sakawagawa Kanagawa/Shizuoka border 24.6 Suruga-Oyama Station Tōmei Expressway 28.9 Ashigara Tōmei Expressway Gotemba Yard 35.5 Gotemba Station Shinbashi Signal Station Tōmei Expressway 38.2 Minami-Gotemba Station 40.6 Fujioka Station Kisegawa 45.3 Iwanami Station 50.7 Susono Station 53.5 Nagaizumi-Nameri Station 55.6 Shimo-Togari Station Sunzu Line Tōkaidō Shinkansen Kisegawa 57.8 Ōoka Station Numazu yard 60.2 Numazu Station Tōkaidō Main Line

The Gotemba Line (御殿場線, Gotemba-sen) is a railway line in Japan operated by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). It connects Kōzu Station in Odawara to Numazu via Gotemba.

The Mt. Fuji limited express service runs between Tokyo's Shinjuku Station and Gotemba via Matsuda.

Station list

Rolling stock

History

The present-day Gotemba Line was built as part of the original route of the Tōkaidō Main Line connecting Tokyo with Osaka. The portion between Kōzu and Numazu was opened on February 1, 1889, although it was not officially named the "Tokaido Line" until 1896. Portions were double tracked from 1891 and the double tracking was completed by 1901.

The line took an indirect route between Kōzu and Numazu in order to avoid the Hakone Mountains, which affected the potential journey time between Tokyo and Osaka. A more direct route had been planned as early as 1909, but technical difficulties delayed the completion of the Tanna Tunnel until December 1, 1934. With the opening of the tunnel, the route of the Tōkaidō Main Line became via Atami Station, leaving the section between Kōzu Station and Numazu Station as a spur line renamed as the Gotemba Line.

In 1943, due to the reduced traffic on the Gotemba line, and the urgent requirement for steel in World War II, the line was returned to a single track railway. Diesel multiple units replaced Steam locomotive hauled passenger trains in 1955, and a cooperative agreement was reached with the privately owned Odakyu Electric Railway to operate express trains directly from Shinjuku Station in Tokyo in the same year. The line was electrified from 1968, and regularly scheduled freight services were discontinued at most stations by 1982.

A new Centralized traffic control system was installed in December 1989, with a programmed route control system implemented from March 1990. Installation for the TOICA automated turnstile system was completed at all stations in 2010.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gotemba Line.