Hanshin Electric Railway
Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd. is a Japanese private railway company owned by Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group that links Osaka and Kobe. It also owns the Hanshin Tigers baseball team, which plays in the Central League and is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture.
The first character for Kobe and the second character for Osaka combine to form the company name, 阪神, which can be read Han-shin.
IC cards are accepted when taking trains.
Rail lines
Operating lines
Abandoned lines
- Kita-Osaka Line
- Kokudo Line
- Koshien Line
- Amagasaki Kaigan Line
- Mukogawa Line : the line between Muko-ohashi and Nishinomiya was used only for freight trains operated by JNR.
Incomplete lines
- Imazu Deyashiki Line : Takasu - Suzaki - Hamakoshien - Imazu
- Amagasaki Takarazuka Line : Amagasaki - : planned by Takarazuka Amagasaki Railway Company
- Daini Hanshin Line: Umeda - - Amagasaki - -
History
- June 12, 1899: Settsu Electric Railway Co., Ltd. was established.
- July 7, 1899: The company was renamed "Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd."
- April 7, 1968: Kobe Rapid Railway was opened and joint operation with Sanyo Electric Railway was started.
- February 15, 1998: Joint operation with Sanyo Electric Railway for limited express service between Umeda and Himeji was started.
- June 20, 2006: Hankyu Holdings, Inc. completed its purchase of a controlling interest in Hanshin in a transaction valued at about $2.2 billion.
- March 20, 2009: Joint operation with Kintetsu Railway for Rapid Express service between Sannomiya and Kintetsu Nara was started.
Rolling stock
Limited Express/Express
- 1000 series - through services onto the Kintetsu Nara Line
- 8000 series
- 9000 series - through services onto the Kintetsu Nara Line
- 9300 series
Local
- 5001
- 5131/5331
- 5500 series
- 5550 series
- 5700 series
Mukogawa Line
- 7861
- 7890/7990
Subsidiaries
Hanshin Electric Railway owns the Hanshin Tigers baseball team, whose home ground is Hanshin Koshien Stadium in front of Kōshien Station of the railway's Main Line.One of the company's subsidiaries is the Osaka-based company Hanshin Contents Link, that operates the Billboard Japan brand under licence from Billboard's publisher.