Native name 山田線 Locale Iwate Prefecture Track gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) Stations 28 Terminis Morioka, Kamaishi | Type Heavy rail Opened 10 October 1923 Electrification None Line length 157.5 km (97.9 mi) | |
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Owner East Japan Railway Company | ||
The Yamada Line (山田線, Yamada-sen) is a railway line in Japan operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It originally connected Morioka Station in Morioka, Iwate to Kamaishi Station in Kamaishi, Iwate via Miyako Station in Miyako, Iwate. The tracks from Morioka Station to Miyako parallel the Hei River through a mountain valley.
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The Miyako to Kamaishi section, which parallels the Sanriku-Kaigan Sea, was extensively damaged by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Service has not resumed on this portion of the Yamada Line, and in February 2012, JR East officially proposed that this section of the line be scrapped and the right-of-way used as a bus rapid transit (BRT) route.
Stations
Stations in greyed out cells have been closed since the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.
History
The Morioka to Kami-Yonai section opened on 10 October 1923, and the line was opened to Kamaishi in sections between 1928 and 1939.
Freight services ceased between 1984 and 1986.
With the privatization of Japanese National Railways (JNR) on 1 April 1987, the line became part of the JR East network.
The 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami closed the Morioka - Miyako section for one month. The Miyako to Kamaishi section has not been reopened, and the route is proposed for conversion to bus rapid transit (BRT).
Ōshida and Asagishi stations were closed from January until 15 March 2013 due to low utilization during the winter months. The two stations closed following the last day of services on 25 March 2016.