Uchibō Line

Uchibō Line
Uchibō Line
	A 255 series EMU on a Sazanami limited express service
Overview
Locale	Chiba Prefecture
Termini	Soga; Awa-Kamogawa;
Stations	30
Service
Type	Regional rail
Operator(s)	JR East
Depot(s)	Chiba
History
Opened	1912
Technical
Line length	119.4 km (74.2 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Operating speed	110 km/h (70 mph)
Route map
Route map
	Legend
	This diagram: view; talk; edit;

The Uchibō Line (内房線, Uchibō-sen) is a railway line operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) adjacent to Tokyo Bay, paralleling the western (i.e., inner) shore of the Bōsō Peninsula. It connects Soga Station in the city of Chiba to Awa-Kamogawa Station in the city of Kamogawa, passing through the municipalities of Chiba, Ichihara, Sodegaura, Kisarazu, Kimitsu, Futtsu, Kyonan, Tateyama, and Minamibōsō. The line is connected at both ends to the Sotobō Line. The name of the Uchibō Line in the Japanese language is formed from two kanji characters. The first, 内, means "inner" and the second, 房 is the first character of the Bōsō. The name of the line thus refers to its location along the inner part of the Bōsō Peninsula in relation to the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, as opposed to the Sotobō Line, "outer Bōsō" which is on the opposite side of the peninsula. South of Kimitsu is single track, and north of Kimitsu is double track.

Station list

Legend

● : All trains stop
| : All trains pass

Notes

Local trains stop at every station.
See Limited Express Sazanami article also.

Line name	Station	Japanese	Distance (km)	to/from Keiyō Line	to/from Sōbu Line (Rapid)	Connecting lines	Location
Line name	Station	Japanese	Distance (km)	Rapid	Rapid	Connecting lines	Location
Sotobō Line	Chiba	千葉	From Chiba 0.0		●	JO Sōbu Line (Rapid) (JO28) (some through services) JB Chūō-Sōbu Line (JB39) ■ Sōbu Main Line ■ Narita Line Chiba Urban Monorail Line 1, Line 2 KS Keisei Chiba Line (Keisei Chiba: KS59)	Chūō-ku, Chiba
	Hon-Chiba	本千葉	1.4		●
	Soga	蘇我	3.8	●	●	JE Keiyō Line (some through services) ■ Sotobō Line
Uchibō Line	Soga	蘇我	From Soga 0.0	●	●	JE Keiyō Line (some through services) ■ Sotobō Line
	Hamano	浜野	3.4	●	●
	Yawatajuku	八幡宿	5.6	●	●		Ichihara
	Goi	五井	9.3	●	●	Kominato Railway Kominato Line
	Anegasaki	姉ケ崎	15.1	●	●
	Nagaura	長浦	20.5	●	●		Sodegaura
	Sodegaura	袖ケ浦	24.4	●	●		Sodegaura
	Iwane	巌根	27.5	●	\|		Kisarazu
	Kisarazu	木更津	31.3	●	●	■ Kururi Line	Kisarazu
	Kimitsu	君津	38.3	●	●		Kimitsu
	Aohori	青堀	42.0	●			Futtsu
	Ōnuki	大貫	46.6	●
	Sanukimachi	佐貫町	50.7	●
	Kazusa-Minato	上総湊	55.1	●
	Takeoka	竹岡	60.2
	Hamakanaya	浜金谷	64.0
	Hota	保田	67.5				Kyonan, Awa District
	Awa-Katsuyama	安房勝山	70.8				Kyonan, Awa District
	Iwai	岩井	73.7				Minami-Bōsō
	Tomiura	富浦	79.8				Minami-Bōsō
	Nako-Funakata	那古船形	82.1				Tateyama
	Tateyama	館山	85.9
	Kokonoe	九重	91.7
	Chikura	千倉	96.6				Minami-Bōsō
	Chitose	千歳	98.6
	Minamihara	南三原	102.2
	Wadaura	和田浦	106.8
	Emi	江見	111.4				Kamogawa
	Futomi	太海	116.0
	Awa-Kamogawa	安房鴨川	119.4			■ Sotobō Line (some through services)

Notes:

Special Rapid services were discontinued from 4 March 2017.^[1]
Commuter Rapid services to/from Keiyo Line were discontinued from 16 March 2024.^[2]

Operation

The Uchibō Line operates local service with trains generally originating and terminating at Chiba Station. Trains headed directly for Tokyo Station merge with the Sotobō Line between Soga and Chiba Stations, and with the Sōbu Main Line between Chiba and Tokyo, while express and commuter trains merge with the Keiyō Line from Soga station.

Local trains

A 209 series EMU on a "Local" service in July 2010

Daytime local service from Chiba to Kisarazu and Kimitsu (sometimes to Kazusa-Minato) is provided by around 2 round trips per hour. In addition, 1 round trip per hour runs from Kisarazu to Awa-Kamogawa (and to Kazusa-Ichinomiya through the Sotobō Line).

Keiyō Line through service

Keiyō Line Local, Rapid, and Commuter Rapid trains operate through services on the Uchibō Line between Soga and Kimitsu. In the morning, there are three inbound Rapid and Commuter Rapid trains, and in the evening, there are five outbound Rapid and Commuter Rapid trains and two inbound Local trains. On weekends and holidays, Rapid trains replace the Commuter Rapid trains. One of the inbound morning trains originates from Kazusa-Minato.

Yokosuka Line—Sōbu Line Rapid through service

An E217 series EMU on a "Rapid" service in December 2013

Trains leaving north from Kimitsu connect directly to the Sōbu Line (Rapid), with some continuing onto the Yokosuka Line. Since the October 2004 timetable revision, all trains now stop at Nagaura and Sodegaura stations.

Limited express trains

An E257-500 series EMU on a Sazanami service in October 2006

The limited express train Sazanami runs from Tokyo Station to Kimitsu (and Tateyama station during busy periods). The limited express View Sazanami formerly ran on the Uchibō Line as well, but it was merged with the Sazanami following the timetable revision on December 10, 2005. The limited express Shinjuku Sazanami runs from Shinjuku to Tateyama on weekends and during peak seasons.

Rolling stock

Local service

E131 series 2-car EMUs (since 13 March 2021)
209-2000/2100 series 4/6-car EMUs (since 1 October 2009)

Keiyō Line through service

209-500 series 10-car EMUs
E233-5000 series 10-car EMUs

Yokosuka Line—Sōbu Line Rapid through service

E217 series 11+4-car EMUs with 2 green cars
E235-1000 series 11+4-car EMUs with 2 green cars

Sazanami and Shinjuku Sazanami Limited Express

255 series EMUs with 1 green car
E257-500 series EMUs

History

The Uchibō line began operation in 1912, and was originally known as the Kisarazu Line (木更津線). It operated from Soga Station to Anegasaki Station in Ichihara. Several extensions were built over the next few years, and in 1919 it reached Awa-Hōjō (present day Tateyama). At this time it was renamed the Hōjō Line (北条線). By 1925 it had been extended to its present-day terminus, Awa-Kamogawa Station.

In 1929, the Hōjō Line was incorporated into the Bōsō Line. However, in 1933, the original section between Soga and Awa-Kamogawa Stations again became its own line, this time renamed the Bōsō West Line (房総西線), and in 1972 it received its current name.

The Soga - Kimitsu section was duplicated between 1964 and 1971, and the entire line was electrified between 1968 and 1971. Individual section dates as given in the Timeline section below.

Timeline

March 28, 1912 – Kisarazu Line (Soga to Anegasaki) begins operation
August 21, 1912 – Extended from Anegasaki to Kisarazu
January 15, 1915 – Extended from Kisarazu to Kazusa-Minato
October 11, 1916 – Extended from Kazusa-Minato to Hamakanaya
August 1, 1917 – Extended from Hamakanaya to Awa-Katsuyama
August 10, 1918 – Extended from Awa-Katsuyama to Nako-Funakata
May 24, 1919 – Extended from Nako-Funakata to Awa-Hōjō; renamed Hōjō Line
June 1, 1921 – Extended from Awa-Hōjō to Minamihara
December 20, 1922 – Extended from Minamihara to Emi
July 25, 1924 – Extended from Emi to Futomi
July 11, 1925 – Extended from Futomi to Awa-Kamogawa
June 16, 1926 – Takeoka station opened
May 20, 1927 – Chitose railyard opened
August 15, 1929 – Bōsō line extended to Awa-Kamogawa; Hōjō Line incorporated into Bōsō Line
August 1, 1930 – Chitose railyard is upgraded to a station
April 1, 1933 – Bōsō line from Soga to Awa-Kamogawa (the run of the former Hōjō Line) is renamed Bōsō West Line
November 20, 1941 – Iwane station opened
March 1, 1946 – Awa-Hōjō station renamed Tateyama Station
January 10, 1947 – Nagaura station opened
April 10, 1956 – Shūsai station renamed Kimitsu Station
July 1, 1964 – Double-track section built between Soga and Hamano
September 20, 1964 – Double track extended from Hamano to Yawatajuku
July 4, 1965 – Double track extended from Yawatajuku to Goi
May 26, 1968 – Double track extended from Goi to Nagaura
July 13, 1968 – Electric wires extended from Chiba station, past Sogo, extending to Kisarazu
March 20, 1969 – Double track extended from Nagaura to Naraba
July 10, 1969 – 135 C57-105 steam engines removed from service
July 11, 1969 – Electric wires extended from Kisarazu to Chikura
March 18, 1970 – Double track extended from Naraba to Kisarazu
March 24, 1970 – Double track extended from Kisarazu to Kimitsu
July 1, 1971 – Electric wires extended from Chikura to Awa-Kamogawa
July 15, 1972 – Renamed Uchibō Line
March 31, 1974 – Naraba station renamed Sodegaura
November 15, 1982 – Freight service between Kisarazu and Awa-Kamogawa discontinued
April 1, 1987 – Acquired by East Japan Railway Company following the division and privatization of JNR initiated by prime minister Yasuhiro Nakasone; Japan Freight Railway Company becomes a second class railway enterprise between Soga and Kisarazu
November 1, 1996 – Japan Freight Railway Company second class enterprise between Soga and Kisarazu is discontinued
February 4, 2001 – ATS-P usage implemented between Chiba and Iwane
October 1, 2009 - 209-2000/2100 series EMUs are introduced on local services
March 13, 2021 - E131 series EMUs are introduced on local services between Kisarazu and Awa-Kamogawa, replacing most 209-2000/2100 series trains in that section

References

^ 2017年3月ダイヤ改正について [Timetable revision in March 2017] (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
^ "京葉線で通勤快速列車の運転終了" [Commuter Rapid service on Keiyo Line ended]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 16 March 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.

[1] 2017年3月ダイヤ改正について [Timetable revision in March 2017] (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. Retrieved 18 January 2017.

[CRended-2] "京葉線で通勤快速列車の運転終了" [Commuter Rapid service on Keiyo Line ended]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 16 March 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.

[1]

[2]