The is a major rapid transit system in the Osaka metropolitan area of Japan, operated by Osaka Metro Co., Ltd., and originally opened in 1933 as the Osaka Municipal Subway.
Osaka Metro forms an integral part of the extensive mass transit system of Greater Osaka (part of the Kansai region), having 123 out of the 1,108 rail stations in the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto region.MiSoL ASP会員サービス・アプリケーション概要 As of 2025, the network transports approximately 2.5 million passengers daily, functioning as the primary urban transport backbone for Osaka City and surrounding municipalities including Higashiosaka, Kadoma, Moriguchi, Sakai, Suita, and Yao.
Osaka Metro is the only subway system in Japan to be partially legally classified as a tram system (Transport in Keihanshin), whereas all other subway systems in Japan are legally classified as railways. Despite this, it has all the characteristics typical of a full-fledged metro system. Major routes within the network include the Midōsuji Line, which runs north–south beneath Midōsuji and is the busiest subway line in the system, carrying approximately 1.3 million passengers per day as of 2015. Other key corridors include the east–west Chūō Line, as well as the Tanimachi and Yotsubashi lines, which provide important links across Osaka's central commercial and residential areas.
The subway system is closely integrated with regional rail networks operated by JR West and private railway companies such as Hankyu and Keihan. Major interchange stations, including Umeda, Namba, and Tennōji, enable convenient transfers and support Osaka's function as a major economic center, offering direct and indirect access to Kansai International Airport and neighboring cities such as Kyoto and Kobe.
Following lessons learned from the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake, the network has undergone extensive safety upgrades. These include the introduction of enhanced earthquake-resistant structures and the implementation of flood and tsunami countermeasures from 2014 onward. In addition, accessibility improvements, such as the installation of elevators at all stations and platform screen doors on selected lines, reflect an emphasis on passenger safety and universal access.
History
In 1903, the Osaka Municipal Transportation Bureau began operating its municipal tram system between Hanazonobashi and Chikkō-Sambashi. As the city expanded, the streetcar network grew to provide service across most of Osaka, eventually reaching a total length of 118 km, making it one of Japan's largest tram systems, second only to the Tokyo Metropolitan Tram.
The First World War prompted rapid growth in Osaka's commerce and industry. However, existing transportation systems primarily streetcars and the municipal bus network proved insufficient to meet rising demand. In response, Osaka City formulated a plan in 1925 for a subway network consisting of four lines totaling 54.5 km. Because construction commenced during the Great Depression and the Shōwa financial crisis, the city government deliberately adopted labor-intensive policies as an economic countermeasure, prioritizing the employment of large numbers of unemployed workers in order to alleviate joblessness and stimulate the economy. As part of this plan, Japan's first publicly operated subway line, Line 1 (now the Midōsuji Line), opened in May 1933, initially operating between Umeda and Shinsaibashi.
As a north–south trunk route, it is the oldest and busiest line in the whole network. Both it and the main east–west route, the Chūō Line, were later extended to the north and east, respectively. These extensions are owned by other railway companies, but both Osaka Metro and these private operators run their own set of trains through between the two sections.
Subway construction was temporarily halted during World War II but resumed vigorously in the postwar period. During the 1950s, transportation demand increased alongside intensified socio-economic activity, particularly as motorization accelerated. Under these circumstances, subway development was strongly promoted, resulting in the completion of a 64.2 km network of six lines forming a grid pattern across the city center by 1970, the year of the World Expo. Subsequent extensions to the outskirts of the city and into the surrounding prefecture continued, and by 1987 the network had expanded to a total length of 99.1 km.
In 1990, in conjunction with the International Garden and Greenery Exposition, Japan's first linear motor subway line, Line 7 (the Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line), opened between Kyobashi and Tsurumi-ryokuchi, and was later extended into the city center.
In July 2005, the Osaka Port Transport System became the unified operator of the Cosmosquare–Osaka Port section of the Osaka Port Transport System.
In December 2006, the second linear motor subway line, Line 8 (the Imazatosuji Line), opened between Itakano and Imazato. This line connects with four existing subway lines, the Keihan Main Line, and the JR Gakkentoshi Line, significantly improving network connectivity. As a result, the Osaka Municipal Subway expanded to eight lines, with 129.9 km of track and 123 stations.
On April 1, 2018, the system was privatized as Osaka Municipal Subway Co., Ltd., commonly known as Osaka Metro Co., Ltd.
In January 2025, in preparation for the 2025 Osaka–Kansai Expo, the Osaka Port Transport System is scheduled to open the Hokko Technoport Line, a 3.2 km section between Cosmosquare and Yumeshima, and will operate passenger services as a Class II railway operator.
Today All but one of the remaining lines of the network, including the Yotsubashi Line, Tanimachi Line, and Sennichimae Line, are completely independent lines with no through services. The lone exception is the Sakaisuji Line, which operates through trains to existing Hankyu Railway lines and is the only line to operate through services to existing railway lines that are not isolated from the national rail network (which is the case with the Midōsuji and Chūō lines). As such, it is not compatible with the rest of the lines.
Nearly all stations have a letter number combination, the letter identifying the line served by the station and the number indicating the relative location of the station on the line. For example, Higobashi Station on the Yotsubashi Line is also known as Y12. This combination is heard in bilingual Japanese-English automated next-station announcements on board all trains, which also provide information on local businesses near the station. Only Hankyu stations served by the Sakaisuji Line do not follow this convention.
Lines
Currently, there are eight lines, operating on of track and serving 124 stations; there is also a -long, 10-station automated guideway transit line known as the "New Tram".
The network is structured around several major interchange stations, including Umeda served by the Midōsuji, Tanimachi, and Yotsubashi lines and Namba, where the Midōsuji, Sennichimae, Sakaisuji, and Yotsubashi lines intersect. These hubs facilitate smooth transfers between subway routes as well as connections to external rail services.
To accommodate heavy demand, high-traffic routes such as the Midōsuji Line operate at short headways of approximately 2 to 5 minutes during peak periods. As a result, the system handled an average daily ridership of around 2.4 million passengers by late 2024, rising to approximately 2.52 million during the April–October 2025 Expo period. Name Line color Line icon Line number Japanese Opened Length Stations Train Length Rapid transitMidōsuji Line Crimson red Line 1 御堂筋線 1933 20 10 carsYotsubashi Line Ocean blue Line 3 四つ橋線 1942 116 carsChūō Line (Yumehanna) Line 4 中央線 1961 156 carsTanimachi Line Royal purple Line 2 谷町線 1967 266 carsSennichimae Line Pink Line 5 千日前線 1969 144 carsSakaisuji Line Vivid brown Line 6 堺筋線 1969 108 carsNagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line Line 7 長堀鶴見緑地線 1990 174 carsImazatosuji Line Line 8 今里筋線 2006 114 carsTotal: 124 Automated guideway transitNankō Port Town Line New Tram 南港ポートタウン線 1997Owned by Osaka Port Transport System between Cosmosquare Station and Trade Center-mae Station 1Including Trade Center-mae Station4 cars 1981Between Trade Center-mae Station and Suminoekoen Station 9Total (Subway, incl. AGT): 134
Table notes
Through services to other lines A notable operational characteristic of the system is the provision of through-services with private railway operators. For example, Kintetsu Railway trains operate via the Chūō Line and continue beyond the subway network toward destinations in Nara and Kyoto, allowing passengers to travel across networks without the need for transfers. Name Line colorLine icon Japanese Opened Length Stations Train LengthKitakyū Namboku Line Crimson red 北大阪急行電鉄 1970 6Including Esaka Station 10 carsKeihanna Line (Yumehanna) 近鉄けいはんな線 1986 8Including Nagata Station6 carsHankyu Senri Line Vivid brown 阪急千里線 1969 11Including Tenjimbashisuji Rokuchōme Station8 carsAll through trains onto the Sakaisuji Line are 8 car trains. Trains on the Hankyu lines terminating at Hankyu Umeda can be 7 or 8 cars.Hankyu Kyoto Main Line 阪急京都本線 1969 22Including Awaji StationTotal: 47
Table notes
Planned line and extensions In addition, there are five line extensions and one entirely new line that are planned. However, on August 28, 2014, the Osaka Municipal Transportation Bureau met about creating the extensions of the later five of the six lines listed below, and have stated considering the current cost of the new extensions (and the possibly of privatization at the time), the government has also considered using light rail transit or bus rapid transit instead. Osaka Metro is now experimenting with bus rapid transit on the route of the Imazatosuji Line extension, with "Imazato Liner" service between Imazato and Yuzato-Rokuchōme slated to begin in April 2019.
With Osaka being the host of Expo 2025, a northwest extension to Yumeshima (the event's planned site) opened on 19 January 2025, with long-term plans envisioning a further extension to Sakurajima north of Universal Studios Japan via Maishima Sports Island. Provisions were put in place for such an extension when the Yumesaki Tunnel between Cosmosquare and Yumeshima was built in the late-2000s, but the then-state of the artificial island at the time of the bid (with only industrial facilities and a single convenience store for the workers) meant it would have been unlikely to proceed had Osaka not won said bid.
Line color Line icon Line number Name Start Terminus Length Line 3Yotsubashi Line Nishi-Umeda Jūsō, later towards Shin-Ōsaka (to Jūsō) Line 4Chūō Line Yumeshima Sakurajima (TBD)MorinomiyaMorinomiya Depot Line 5Sennichimae Line Minami-Tatsumi towards Mito (TBD) Line 7Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line Taishō Tsurumachi Yonchōme (vicinity) Line 8Imazatosuji Line Imazato Yuzato Rokuchōme (TBD) - Line 9Shikitsu–Nagayoshi Line (provisional) Suminoekōen Kire-Uriwari
Stations
Universal accessibility forms a central component of Osaka Metro's station infrastructure. The operator achieved full compliance with Japan's Act on Promotion of Smooth Transportation without Causing Inconvenience to Persons with Disabilities by 2010, ensuring barrier-free access at all 134 stations. Each station provides at least one continuous wheelchair-accessible route ("one-route" access) from platform level to street level, supported by elevators and escalators. Additional accessibility features include tactile paving (braille blocks) for visually impaired passengers, Braille-equipped signage and route maps, wide automatic ticket gates suitable for wheelchairs and strollers, and multipurpose restrooms designed for users with mobility needs. Priority seating areas, nursing rooms, and rest facilities further enhance usability for elderly passengers and families with children.