Sanyo Electric Railway Main Line

Operation

Nishidai is nominal as the start of the line, thus all trains of Sanyo start or end beyond, in Kobe Rapid Railway, or further Hanshin stations, namely Sannomiya stations on Hankyū's Kobe Main Line and on Hanshin's Main Line for Locals, Umeda terminal of Hanshin in Osaka.

The line accepts trains of Hanshin via Kobe Rapid, down (west) to Sumaura-kōen. In the Sanyo Main Line, all Hanshin trains stop all stations on their way, though in Hanshin's Main Line some are operated as Locals and some as Limited Express.

Rapid service

Abbreviations are tentative for this article.

All day operation:

Hanshin-Sanyō Limited Express (直通特急, Chokutsū Tokkyū) (HS)

Umeda of Hanshin - Sanyo Himeji. Jointly operated by Hanshin Electric Railway and Sanyo, this train makes limited stops on both the Hanshin's Main Line and the Sanyo's Main Line.

Local (普通, Futsū) (Lo)

Hankyu Sannomiya or Hanshin Sannomiya or Sanyo Suma - Sanyo Himeji, makes every stop on the Sanyo Railway Main Line and the Kobe Kosoku Line. At night, down (westbound) trains start at Kōsoku Kobe and up (eastbound) trains terminate at Shinkaichi.

Hanshin trains (HT)

Hanshin's Limited Express trains from Umeda stop at all stations in the line to Sumaura-kōen.

Morning and night only:

Sanyo Limited Express (山陽特急, Sanyōtokkyū) (sy)

Mainly operated between Higashi-Futami and Sanyo Himeji, there is a westbound train from Kosoku Kobe for Sanyo Himeji in the early morning. The same stops as the Hanshin-Sanyo Limited Express (HS) but does not go east beyond Kosoku kobe.

S Limited Express (S特急, S Tokkyū) (sl)

Hanshin Sannomiya - Sanyo Himeji, more stops than HS, sy. Operates up (eastbound) in the mornings from Shikama, Takasago or Higashi-Futami to Sanyo Suma or Hanshin Sannomiya, and down (westbound) late nights from Sannomiya to Sanyo Himeji.

Stations

Abbreviations of rapid service trains, see above section. Lower cases show limited hour/service.

History

The Hyogo Electric Tramway (兵庫電気軌道) opened the section from the Hyogo Electric Railway Station (since closed) to Sanyo Suma on 15 March 1910 as 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ¹⁄₂ in) standard gauge, dual track electrified at 600 V DC. All subsequent extensions were electrified dual track. The line was extended to Akashi in 1917.

In 1923, the Kobe Electric Railway opened the Akashi to Himeji section, and merged with the Hyogo Electric Railway in 1927. The Sanyo Electric Railway was created in 1934.

The line voltage was increased to 1,500 V DC in 1948. In 1968, the Higashi Suma to Hyogo Electric Railway Station section was closed and the line was connected to the Hanshin Main Line, enabling through services to Umeda in Osaka.

Station numbering was introduced on Sanyo Electric Railway lines from 1 April 2014, with Main Line stations numbered SY01 to SY43.

Accidents

On 12 February 2013, at around 15:50, a non-stop 6-car limited express service bound for Umeda collided with the rear end of a truck which was protruding onto a level crossing to the west of Arai Station. The first two cars of the train derailed and slid 170 m before hitting the edge of the station platform and coming to rest. 15 people were injured in the collision, including the train driver and truck driver.