Kita-Osaka Kyūkō Railway
Kita-Osaka Kyuko 8000 series train (between Momoyamadai Station and Senri-Chūō Station)
Overview
Parent companyHankyu (54%)
(Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group)
HeadquartersToyonaka, Osaka, Japan
LocaleOsaka Prefecture, Japan
Dates of operation1967 (incorporation); 1970 (opening)–
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Length5.9 km (3.7 mi)
Other
Websitewww.kita-kyu.co.jp

Kita-Osaka Kyuko Railway (北大阪急行電鉄, Kita Ōsaka Kyūkō Dentetsu, lit. "North Osaka Express Electric Railway") is a railway operator in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. Its sole line, officially named the Namboku Line (南北線, Namboku sen), operates as an extension of the Midōsuji Line of the Osaka Metro.

The Kita-Osaka Kyuko Railway Company, Ltd. (北大阪急行電鉄株式会社, Kita Ōsaka Kyūkō Dentetsu Kabushiki-gaisha), established on 11 December 1967, is majorly owned by Hankyu. Kitakyu, as it is often abbreviated, also owns various commercial and residential properties along the line.

Stations on the Kitakyu Namboku Line

No. Station Japanese Distance (km) Transfers Location
 M06  Minō-Kayano 箕面萱野 0.0 Under construction (2024)[1] Minoh
 M07  Minō-Semba-Handaimae 箕面船場阪大前 1.1
 M08  Senri-Chūō 千里中央 2.5 Osaka Monorail Main Line Toyonaka
 M09  Momoyama-dai 桃山台 4.5   Suita
 M10  Ryokuchi-kōen 緑地公園 6.5   Toyonaka
 M11  Esaka 江坂 8.4 Osaka Metro Midōsuji Line (through trains) Suita
Notes

    Former line

    • Kaijō Line (Senri-Chūō - Bankokuhaku-chūōguchi)

    Rolling stock

    Kita-Osaka Kyuko 9000 series train (between Momoyamadai Station and Senri-Chūō Station)

    Former rolling stock

    • 2000 series (from 1969 until 1993)
    • 7000/8000 series (from 1969 until 1970)

    History

    The line was opened on 24 February 1970, to connect the then northern terminus of the Midōsuji Line, Esaka, with the grounds of the 1970 World's Fair. The Expo link was closed on 14 September, and the line was redirected to a new underground terminal of Senri-Chūō.

    Takeo Miki, then Minister of International Trade and Industry, brokered the deal creating the railway as a joint venture between the City of Osaka and Hankyu Railway. Although the line was originally envisioned as a straightforward extension of the Midosuji Line, the city government was unable to independently complete the extension because it went beyond municipal boundaries, thus raising issues of expropriation and financing.

    The tracks between Senri-Chuo and the Expo Park were removed following the Expo, and the right-of-way repurposed as part of the Chugoku Expressway.

    Since the late 1980s, there has been a plan to extend the line 2.5 km (1.6 mi) northward from Senri-Chuo to a new station in the city of Minoh. The Minoh municipal government exchanged a letter of confirmation with Hankyu and Kitakyu regarding studies of the extension in 2011, and the government of Osaka Prefecture joined a four-party memorandum of understanding in 2012. As of early 2016, the extension was not yet finalized or funded.[2]

    On 19 January 2017, construction began on the extension of the line to Minō-Kayano, which will have one intermediate station at Minō-Semba-Handaimae. Completion of the extension was originally scheduled for 2020;[3] in May 2019, the extension's scheduled opening date was delayed to 2023 because of construction problems.[4] The scheduled opening of the extension was set for the end of 2023,[5] but was later pushed back further to 24 March 2024.[6]

    References

    1. ↑ "Hankyu Hanshin Holdings INTEGRATED REPORT 2023" (PDF). hankyu-hanshin.co.jp. 2023. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
    2. ↑ "北大阪急行線の延伸と関連まちづくり（最新情報はこちらから！）" [Kita-Osaka Kyuko Railway Extension Planning and Related Development]. Government of Minoh (in Japanese). 2012.
    3. ↑ "Kita-Osaka Kyuko Railway extension to cost ¥60 billion, has two new stations". Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). 19 January 2017. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
    4. ↑ "北大阪急行電鉄南北線延伸線の新駅の名称が本日決定しました" [Names of new stations of the Kitakyu line to be finalized] (PDF). Kita-Osaka Kyuko Railway (in Japanese). 24 July 2018. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
    5. ↑ "北大阪急行，南北線延伸線（千里中央—箕面萱野間）を2023年度末に開業へ" [Kita-Osaka Railway to open Namboku Line extension (between Senri-Chuo and Minoh-Kayano) by the end of 2023]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). 27 August 2022. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
    6. ↑ "開業日決定！「北大阪急行の延伸」24年3月に 箕面のニュータウンへ電車くるぞ！". trafficnews.jp (in Japanese). 23 August 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
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