The is a 26.3 km railway line owned by the Heisei Chikuhō Railway. The line runs west along the Ima River from Yukuhashi to Tagawa, all within Fukuoka Prefecture.
History
The line was first built in 1895 by the , which was merged in 1901 with Kyushu Railway. It was an important railway line to transport coal between the Chikuhō coal mine with in Kanda, north of Yukuhashi. Kyushu Railway was nationalized in 1907 and was merged into Japanese Government Railway, where it was named the Tagawa Line. In 1942, the line was extended south from Ita Station (now Tagawa-Ita Station) to Hikosan Station. The portion between Hikosan and Soeda Station was later reorganized into the Hita Line (now Hitahikosan Line) in 1956, and the section between Soeda and Ita was also merged into the same line in 1960 to form the current Tagawa Line.
Between 1899 and 1973, a short freight-only branch line ran north from Kawara Station (now Magarikane Station) to Natsuyoshi.
Ridership suffered with the decline and closure of the Chikuhō coal mine. Therefore, JR Kyushu, the successor of Japanese Government Railway, privatized and transferred the Ita Line, Itoda Line, and Tagawa Line to the newly founded Heisei Chikuhō Railway in 1997.
Operations The line is not electrified and is single-tracked for the entire line. Some services continue past Tagawa-Ita Station on the Ita Line to Nōgata Station.
The Tagawa Line runs through many historical sites, including the , the oldest railway tunnel in Japan, and the , an old brick arch bridge. Both sites were registered as national cultural heritage sites in 1999.
Stations All stations are within Fukuoka Prefecture. No.NameDistance (km)ConnectionsLocationHC31行橋0.0 JR Kyushu: Nippō Main LineYukuhashiHC30令和コスタ行橋1.3 HC29美夜古泉2.3 HC28今川河童3.0 HC27豊津4.9 HC26新豊津5.8 MiyakoHC25東犀川三四郎8.2 HC24犀川9.7 HC23崎山駅12.4 HC22源じいの森15.8 AkaHC21油須原16.9 HC20赤18.4 HC19内田20.7 HC18柿下温泉口22.5 KawaraHC17勾金23.6 HC16上伊田24.9 TagawaHC15田川伊田26.3 Ita Line JR Kyushu: Hitahikosan Line
References