Keisei Matsudo Line


The Keisei Matsudo Line is a railway line in Japan owned and operated by Keisei Electric Railway. The line runs between Matsudo Station in Matsudo, Chiba, and Keisei-Tsudanuma Station in Narashino, Chiba.
The line was known as the Shin-Keisei Line from December 1947 until April 2025, when it was operated by the Shin-Keisei Electric Railway. Shin-Keisei and Keisei merged in April 2025.

History

Most of the line overlaps with a railway line opened on an unknown date by the Imperial Japanese Army Railways and Shipping Section used to connect military facilities. The line had numerous sharp curves to train the drivers, which also led to the Matsudo line sharing a similar trait. Although the rail profile of the line was sold to the Seibu Railway after the section disbanded following Japanese capitulation, the track bed remained in place. Seibu Railway and the Keisei Electric Railway, which both had hired former Railways and Shipping Section personnel, competed to gain approval from the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers to construct a railway line using the track bed. The latter gained approval in March 1946 as they had their base of operation in Chiba prefecture. The Shin-Keisei Electric Railway was established on 23 October 1946 as a subsidiary of the Keisei Electric Railway. The construction began in January 1947 using old materials with different standards due to difficulties in obtaining new materials.
The first section of the Shin-Keisei Line was opened and electrified at 1,500 V DC, from to, on 27 December 1947. The Yukuendai–Takifudo section was reopened in 1948, and extended to Hatsutomi the following year. The reopened sections were regauged to in October 1953, and the entire line was reopened as a single-track line by 21 April 1955. In August 1959, the line was again regauged, this time to to match the standard gauge used by Keisei Electric Railway.

Acquisition by Keisei Electric Railway

On 31 October 2023, it was announced that the Shin-Keisei Line would be merged into the Keisei Electric Railway and renamed to the Matsudo Line, which was completed on 1 April 2025. Stations were renumbered to KS-66 at Shin-Tsudanuma through KS-88 at Matsudo. The restructuring was the result of revenue loss owing to the effects of COVID-19 on public transportation. To prepare for the merger, Keisei purchased all remaining shares of the Shin-Keisei Electric Railway in September 2022 which resulted in Shin-Keisei becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Keisei. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism approved the merger on 25 June 2024. The line's fares and service schedules did not change when the merger took place, although the pink-colored station infrastructure and trains will be repainted to Keisei's color scheme.

Operations

All trains stop at all stations. Most trains operate throughout the line, although during the morning hours, some services terminate at Shin-Tsudanuma. In mornings and nights some trains originate or terminate at Kunugiyama. Services operate at a frequency of one train every 4 minutes in the morning peak, every 10 minutes during the day, and every 8 minutes in the evening peak. During the daytime, the Matsudo Line runs alternate through trains to on the Keisei Chiba Line.

Rolling stock

All trains are based at Kunugiyama and Tsudanuma Depots.

Former