The is a rural railway line in Iwate Prefecture, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Hanamaki Station in the city of Hanamaki with Kamaishi Station in the city of Kamaishi.
Kenji Miyazawa, known for literary works such as Night on the Galactic Railroad, was born in Hanamaki City along this line. Consequently, the line bears a commemorative nickname and operates tourist trains. The landscapes along the line depicted in "Night on the Galactic Railroad" are said to be modeled after the Iwate Light Railway, the predecessor of this line, and the route's nickname, "Galaxy Dream Line Kamaishi Line," reflects this connection. - This Tomakomai Minpō article reports on a paper summarizing research suggesting the scenery along the former Oji Light Railway Hamamatsu Line—the predecessor to the Hidaka Main Line—served as the motif. However, the paper's author states, "This does not negate the Iwate Light Railway theory." Similarly, Kenji Miyazawa's Signal and Signaler personifies the signals of the Tohoku Main Line and Kamaishi Line as a romantic tale between a man and a woman. Furthermore, because Miyazawa frequently used Esperanto words in his works, each station has been given an affectionate nickname in Esperanto.
History
The precursor to the line opened in 1915 as the , a light railway extending 65.4 km from to . The original plan was to link with Kamaishi Mine and Kamaishi Port, but at an altitude of 887m, the mountain pass at Sennintōge prevented immediate expansion eastward to Kamaishi. A ropeway conveyor was used to convey goods onward to Ōhashi, from where a 16 km 762mm (2'6") gauge mining railway (which operated between 1915 and 1965) provided the service to Kamaishi.
The railway was nationalized in August 1936, and the line became the "Kamaishi Line". Motive power for the line was provided by six JNR Class 231 steam locomotives, built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in the USA, and numbered 231 to 236. Work started on upgrading and re-gauging the line, and the first section, the 31.2 km from Hanamaki to was regauged to the standard Japanese track gauge of and re-opened from September 1943. The mining railway between and Kamaishi was also upgraded to gauge by October 1944 to meet the urgent need for increased capacity to transport iron ore during the war period, and was named the . The entire 90.2 km line was finally completed between Hanamaki and Kamaishi in June 1950, opening to traffic on 10 October of that year.
Stations All stations are in Iwate Prefecture.
Name Esperanto NicknameDistance (km) Rapid Hamayuri Connections Location 花巻 Ĉielarko 0.0 ● Tōhoku Main Line Hanamaki 似内 La Marbordo 3.5 ｜ 新花巻 Stelaro 6.4 ● Tōhoku Shinkansen 小山田 Luna Nokto 8.3 ｜ 土沢 Brila Rivero 12.7 ● Tono 晴山 Ĉeriz-arboj 15.9 ｜ 岩根橋 Fervojponto 21.7 ｜ 宮守 Galaksia Kajo 25.1 ● 柏木平 Glanoj 31.2 ｜ 鱒沢 Lakta Vojo 33.6 ▲ 荒谷前 Akvorado 36.4 ｜ 岩手二日町 Farmista Domo 39.3 ｜ 綾織 Teksilo 41.1 ｜ 遠野 Folkloro 46.0 ● 青笹 Kapao 50.3 ｜ 岩手上郷 Cervodanco 53.8 ▲ 平倉 Monta Dio 56.6 ｜ 足ヶ瀬 Montopasejo 61.2 ｜ 上有住 Kaverno 65.4 ｜ Sumita, Kesen District 陸中大橋 Minaĵo 73.7 ｜ Kamaishi 洞泉 Cervoj 79.6 ｜ 松倉 La Suda Kruco 83.2 ▲ 小佐野 Verda Vento 86.5 ● 釜石 La Oceano 90.2 ● Sanriku Railway Rias Line
Closed stations , between Nitanai and Oyamada, 2.5 km east of Nitanai, opened 25 October 1913, closed 14 March 1985 when the nearby Shin-Hanamaki Station opened.
Rolling stock
Kamaishi Line services are operated using KiHa 110 series diesel trains.
From 12 April 2014, a newly formed SL Ginga "Joyful Train" (excursion train) began operating on the line at weekends using the restored JNR Class C58 steam locomotive C58 239 together with a train of four modified former KiHa 141 series diesel cars purchased from JR Hokkaido (themselves rebuilt from earlier 50 series passenger coaches and made surplus to requirements following the electrification of the Sasshō Line). The diesel cars provide additional power to cope with the line's gradients. The coach design work was overseen by industrial designer Ken Okuyama.
Former rolling stock Following the full opening of the line in 1950, passenger and freight services on the line were hauled by JNR Class D50 2-8-2 steam locomotives, necessary to negotiate the steep gradients on the line of up 25 ‰. A couple of JNR Class 8620 steam locomotives were also used for shunting at Kamaishi Station. JNR Class C58 2-6-2 steam locomotives were also used on both passenger and freight services running to and from the Yamada Line. Six JNR Class D51 2-8-2 steam locomotives were subsequently transferred to the line, displacing some of the earlier D50s, but steam haulage on the line was entirely replaced by diesel haulage from March 1967.
References