Namboku Line
| Status | Operational |
|---|---|
| Owner | Harmony Rail Transit (Lamtsu) |
| Locale | Lamtsu |
| Termini | Hayakawa Meguro |
| Stations | 13.8 km |
| Type | Commuter |
|---|---|
| Operator(s) | Harmony Rail Transit (Lamtsu) |
| Depot(s) | Meguro Depot |
| Rolling stock | E231-100 (Dawn) |
| Former Rolling Stock | SP100 |
| Opened | 1968 |
|---|
| Line Length | hold |
|---|---|
| Track gauge | 1453 mm |
| Electrification | 100% |
| Operating speed | 80 (Urban) 120 (Suburban) |
The Namboku Line is a railway line in Lamtsu connecting the Cities of Meguro, Lamtsu, Misato, Fukaaura and Hayakawa. It is part of the Harmony Rail Transit (Lamtsu) network. The line's name is derived from the direction in which it travels, 南北 (North-South). The Line follows the Yamate Line for the portion of track between Yamate and Misato, branching off afterwards.
The Namboku Line's colour on system maps and the stripe on the trains is Red. Mihara Line Express services from Yamate serve as the Rapid Service between Yamate and Misato, with Cross-Platform transfers used to be offered at Misato until the reconstruction.
Service Outline
Trains run every 3-4 minutes during peak hour, and 5-10 minutes during the off-peak.
Station List
| Distance | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station Name (Kanji) | Station Name | Mihara Line Express | Between | From Meguro | Transfers | Location |
| Meguro | | | 0.0 | Meguro City | |||
| Kamisato | 1.4 | 1.4 | ||||
| Shikaoi | 1.3 | 2.7 | Yamate City | |||
| Yamate | ● | 1.1 | 3.8 | Yamate Line | ||
| Oshamambe | | | 1.1 | 4.9 | Lamtsu City | ||
| Lamtsu | ● | 0.7 | 5.6 | Seiyo Shinkansen | ||
| Kimotsuki | | | 0.9 | 6.5 | Yamate Line | Misato City | |
| Misato | ● | 0.8 | 7.3 | Yamate Line
Mihara Line | ||
| Nyuzen | 1.4 | 8.7 | Fukaaura | |||
| Fukaaura | 0.9 | 9.6 | ||||
| Nakatonbetsu | 1.8 | 11.4 | ||||
| Shingu | 1.2 | 12.6 | Hayakawa | |||
| Hayakawa | ● | 1.2 | 13.8 | Ome Line
Mihara Line (Suburban) |
Rolling Stock
As of June 2022, all Namboku Line services are formed of 10 car Harmony Rail Transit E233-100 "Dawn" EMUs, purchased from and designed by New Tshai Industries. This followed the mass retirement of the KCR E44 "Yellow Head" trains from Lamtsu service. All Namboku Line rolling stock is based at Meguro Depot. Mihara Line Express Rolling Stock also operates on the section between Yamate and Lamtsu using Namboku Line track.
Namboku Line Local Services
E233-100 "Dawn" (Since June 2020)
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Rolling Stock used in the past
JGR Class 5500 Locomotives (1968-1972)
MCR Class 3 (1972-1990)
E231-100 (1985-2022)
E44 (1996-2022)
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History
The Namboku Line opened in 1968 between Meguro station and Fukaaura Station. Services initially ran from Meguro to Yamate, before the rest of the section opened following issues with the bridge at Misato. The Namboku Line trains would initially use Yamate Line tracks between Yamate and Misato, with the quadruple-tracking of the line completing in 1972, coinciding with the electrification of the line.
The express service on the Mihara Line was extended to Yamate in 1998, to cope with congestion on the line. to facilitate this, Oshamambe Station was converted from Island platfoms to passing platforms on the Namboku Line.
Kimotsuki Station was constructed on the existing Yamate and Namboku Line tracks between Lamtsu and Misato in 2016, to facilitate the construction of the Ome Line extension, which would bypass Misato and terminate there. The plan fell through however, and the platforms for the Ome Line would later be converted to the new alignment of the Vtuber Park Line, following the route of the initial Ome Line proposal.
In the 2022 Great Lamtsu Railway Rebuild, the Namboku Line would see the speed limit for the section from Misato to Lamtsu capped at 80km/h, down from the original 120. Many of the tracks were also rebuilt to smoothen out the curves and many inclines.