Stations 18 Rolling stock 205-500 series | Opened 1921 Line length 33.3 km (20.7 mi) | |
 | ||
Terminis | ||
The Sagami Line (相模線, Sagami-sen) is a railway line in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It approximately parallels the east bank of the Sagami River. The line connects Hashimoto Station in Sagamihara and Chigasaki Station in Chigasaki.
Contents
5x sagami line
Services
While most services are operated inside the line as local trains, some run through onto the Yokohama Line beyond Hashimoto and make four additional stops, terminating at Hachiōji Station.
Rolling stock
All trains are operated with 205-500 series four-car EMUs.
Stations
History
The Chigasaki to Samukawa section was opened by the Sagami Railway (Sōtetsu) in 1921, primarily to haul gravel. The line was extended to Atsugi in 1926, and to Hashimoto in 1931.
The line was nationalized in 1944 during World War II; the private Sagami Railway began operating the then Jinchū Line (神中線), now the Sagami Railway Main Line.
After privatization of Japanese National Railways (JNR) in 1987, the line was electrified in 1991. Before the JNR privatization, there were discussions to transfer the line to the Sagami Railway in order meet the expected demands of passenger traffic in the Tokyo and Yokohama suburbs. Because it had long been left as a non-electrified rural line, the cost to upgrade the line was beyond the ability of then financially constrained JNR; Sagami Railway, on the other hand, was running a profitable operation on its own line. However, the two companies did not agree on a deal, and plans to transfer the line were cancelled.
A short branch to Nishi-Samukawa Station from Samukawa Station was closed in 1984, and freight services ceased in 1998.