Fukushima Kōtsū Iizaka Line
The Iizaka Line, also known as the Iiden, is a Japanese railway line which connects Fukushima Station in Fukushima City with Iizaka Onsen Station in Iizaka, both located in Fukushima Prefecture. It is owned and operated by Fukushima Transportation.
History
1920s
The Iizaka Line's history can be traced back to August 1921 and the founding of Iizaka Tramway which changed its name to Fukushima Iizaka Electric Tramway before the end of the year. The section of tramway track between Fukushima and Iizaka Station opened on 13 April 1923. Later on in the year the company was renamed Iizaka Electric Railway.The track was soon extended, and in 1927 the present-day Iizaka Onsen Station became the new terminus with Iizaka Station's name being changed to Hanamizuzaka. 1927 also saw merger of Iizaka Electric Railway with Fukushima Electric Railway.
1940s–1980s
opened in 1940, and in the following years the section between Fukushima and Moriai was converted to dedicated tramway track. Due to the rebuilding and moving of the track, Moriai was closed then reopened in a new location and Soneda was closed and rebuilt as Dentetsu Fukushima. In 1944, Shimizu Yakuba-mae was renamed Iwashiroshimizu. On 1 March 1945, the line was reclassified as a regional railway line.Fukushima Electric Railway changed its name to Fukushima Transportation in 1962, and the same year Dentetsu Fukushima Station's name was changed to Soneda. Carrying capacity on the line was increased with the purchase of brand new 5000 series cars in 1963. Kamimatsukawa Station opened the following year.
Coming into the 1970s, capacity was increased further with the purchase of new 5300 series cars in 1971. The Iizaka East Line closed the same year, leaving the Iizaka Line as the only train line run by Fukushima Transportation. Sakuramizu Station opened in 1975, and three 3300 series cars were purchased from Tokyu in 1976.
In 1980 two more 5000 series cars were acquired from Tokyu, and two years later Iizaka Onsen Station was moved to coincide with the shortening of the line by.
1990s–present
1991 saw multiple changes happen to the Iizaka Line, starting out with the renaming of Moriai to Bijutsukantoshokanmae. On 24 June 1991, the overhead catenary power supply was changed from 600 V to 1,500 V DC.2001 braking accident
At approximately 9:35 pm on April 8, 2001 a train that had departed from Iizaka Onsen in the direction of Fukushima had a brief power outage at Bijutsukantoshokanmae, two stations before Fukushima. When the train resumed operation it was realized that the braking system wasn't operating. The train continued past Soneda, the next station, and crashed through the buffer stop at Fukushima, the end of the line. The train continued for further, coming to rest in Fukushima Station's East Building. Four people were injured, none seriously.It was later discovered that due to improper maintenance, the power outage at Bijutsukantoshokanmae had caused the main brakes to become nonfunctional. The driver had also failed to activate the emergency brakes.
Following the accident, an ATS safety system was installed.
2011 earthquake
All service on the Iizaka Line was shut down in the immediate aftermath of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, however normal service was restored two days later on March 13.Service
While the termini of the Iizaka Line are Fukushima and Iizaka Onsen stations, all trains night at the line's rail yard located at Sakuramizu Station.Service frequency
Weekdays
As a general rule, trains come every 20–25 minutes in the early morning, every 15 minutes in the morning, every 25 minutes in the daytime, every 15 minutes in the evening, and every 25–30 minutes at night.Weekends and holidays
As a general rule, trains come every 20–40 minutes in the early morning, every 20 minutes in the morning, every 25 minutes in the daytime, and every 30 minutes at night.Rolling stock
- 1000 series 2/3-car EMUs
- 7000 series 2/3-car EMUs
In 2017, a number of former Tokyu 1000 series cars were resold to Fukushima Transportation for use on the Iizaka Line.
The three-car sets are mainly used during the weekday morning peak hours only.
7000 series
The 7000 series trains are formed as two- and three-car sets as follows.Two-car sets
The DeHa 7100 cars each have one lozenge-type pantograph.Three-car sets
The DeHa 7100 cars each have one lozenge-type pantograph.Car identities
The former identities of the fleet are as shown below.| Set No. | Car No. | Tokyu numbering |
| 7101 | DeHa 7101 | DeHa 7126 |
| 7101 | DeHa 7202 | DeHa 7125 |
| 7103 | DeHa 7103 | DeHa 7124 |
| 7103 | DeHa 7204 | DeHa 7157 |
| 7105 | DeHa 7105 | DeHa 7158 |
| 7105 | DeHa 7206 | DeHa 7123 |
| 7107 | DeHa 7107 | DeHa 7116 |
| 7107 | DeHa 7208 | DeHa 7147 |
| 7109 | DeHa 7109 | DeHa 7148 |
| 7109 | DeHa 7202 | DeHa 7115 |
| 7111 | DeHa 7111 | DeHa 7118 |
| 7111 | SaHa 7316 | DeHa 7107 |
| 7111 | DeHa 7212 | DeHa 7117 |
| 7113 | DeHa 7113 | DeHa 7140 |
| 7113 | SaHa 7315 | DeHa 7134 |
| 7113 | DeHa 7214 | DeHa 7129 |
1000 series
The 1000 series trains are formed as two- and three-car sets as follows. Two sets were converted in fiscal 2016, entering service on 1 April 2017. Two more sets are scheduled to be introduced during fiscal 2017, followed by two more two-car sets in fiscal 2018, ultimately replacing the entire fleet of 7000 trainsets.Car identities
The former identities of the fleet are as shown below.| Set No. | Car No. | Tokyu numbering |
| 1107 | DeHa 1107 | DeHa 1307 |
| 1107 | KuHa 1208 | DeHa 1257 |
| 1109 | DeHa 1109 | DeHa 1308 |
| 1109 | DeHa 1313 | DeHa 1408 |
| 1109 | KuHa 1210 | DeHa 1258 |