Himeji Station
Lines
Himeji Station is served by the JR San'yō Main Line, and is located 54.8 kilometers from the terminus of the line at Kobe and 87.9 kilometers from Osaka. On the Shinkansen network it is 91.7 kilometers from Shin-Osaka and 644.3 kilometers from Tokyo. The 65.7 kilometer Bantan Line to Wadayama and the 158.1 kilometer Kishin Line to Niimi terminate at Himeji Station.
Station layout
The station has a complex layout of elevated platforms. The conventional trains operate from four island platforms, the first two of which have one dead-headed track each. The Shinkansen portion of the station has one side platform and one island platform with two passing tracks between them.
Platforms
| 1 | ■  Bantan Line
|
for Teramae and Wadayama |
| 2 | ■ Limited Express Hamakaze | for Osaka |
| 3, 4 | ■  Kishin Line
|
for Sayo |
| 5, 6 | ■  San'yō Main Line
|
for Sannomiya and Osaka |
| 5 | ■ Limited Express Super Hakuto | for Kyoto |
| 7, 8 | ■ San'yō Main Line
|
for Aioi, Banshū-Akō and Kamigōri |
| 7 | ■ Limited Express Hamakaze | for Kinosaki Onsen |
| 7, 8 | ■ Limited Express Super Hakuto | for Tottori Kurayoshi |
| 11 | ■  San'yō Shinkansen
|
for Shin-Osaka and Tokyo |
| 12,13 | ■ San'yō Shinkansen
|
for Okayama, Hakata and Kagoshima-Chūō |
Adjacent stations
| « | Service | » | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San'yō Main Line (JR Kobe Line) | ||||
| Hamamatsu CA34 (westbound) Sannomiya (JR-A61) (eastbound) |
Sleeper Limited Express Sunrise Seto & Sunrise Izumo |
Okayama | ||
| Nishi-Akashi (JR-A74) (One-way Operation) |
West Express Ginga (San'in Route) | Shoyama | ||
| Nishi-Akashi (JR-A74) | West Express Ginga (San'yo Route) | Okayama (JR-S01) (JR-W01) | ||
| Akashi (JR-A73) Kakogawa (JR-A79) (No. 13 only) |
Limited Express Super Hakuto |
Aioi or Kamigori | ||
| Kakogawa (JR-A79) | Commuter Limited Express Rakuraku Harima |
Terminus | ||
| Kakogawa (JR-A79) | Special Rapid Service | Agaho | ||
| Higashi-Himeji (JR-A84) | Local (Rapid Service) | Agaho | ||
| Bantan Line | ||||
| Akashi (JR-A73) Kakogawa (JR-A79) (No. 5 only) |
Limited Express Hamakaze |
Fukusaki | ||
| Terminus | Local | Kyoguchi | ||
| Kishin Line | ||||
| Terminus | Local | Harima-Takaoka | ||
History
Himeji Station was opened by Sanyo Railway, the present-day San'yō Main Line, in 1888. At the time, railway stations were usually built either outside or alongside urban areas, but Himeji Station was built bordering the old city walls, at the end of the main street (Ootemae-dori). The current Sanyo Railway Station is actually constructed on top of part of the old city wall. It is thought that the reason was that the army was based in Himeji Castle. This proximity to the city helped to contribute to urban development.
Himeji Station was linked to Bantan Railway (播但鉄道, Bantan Tetsudō), the present day Bantan Line, in 1894. Kishin Line was linked to the station in 1930.
The station was expanded with the opening of the Sanyo Shinkansen in 1972.
Preparation for the elevation of the conventional lines had been undertaken since 1989, and begun in earnest in 1994 after the relocation of Himeji's freight terminal and train yards. On March 26, 2006, platforms for the JR Kobe Line and Sanyo Main Line switched to the elevated railway. Platforms for the Bantan and Kishin Lines were elevated beginning on December 22, 2008.
Timeline
 |
- December 23, 1888: The Sanyo Railway segment between Akashi Station and Himeji Station opens.
- July 26, 1894: The Bantan Railway segment between Himeji Station and Teramae Station opens.
- June 1, 1903: Sanyo Railway purchases Bantan Railway.
- December 1, 1906: Sanyo Railway is nationalized.
- September 1, 1930: Kishin Line is connected.
- March 15, 1972: The Sanyo Shinkansen segment between Okayama and Shin-Osaka opens.
- April 1, 1987: Japanese National Railways is divided and privatized. The line is taken over by the West Japan Railway Company.
- January 17, 1995: There was a blockage of the segment of the Sanyō Shinkansen between Shin-Osaka and Himeji, caused by the Great Hanshin earthquake.
- April 8, 1995: The blocked section reopens.
- October 1, 2003: Nozomi service is added to the schedule.
- March 15, 2014: Mizuho service is added to the schedule.
- March 2018: Introduction of station numbering to the Kobe Line as Himeji was assigned station number JR-A85.
Passenger statistics
In fiscal 2016, the station was used by an average of 51,763 passengers daily (boarding passengers only).
See also
References
- ^ "A comparative study of the relation between the elevated railroad project and urban area development in western-part-of-Japan (Kochi University of Technorogy Library)" (PDF) (in Japanese). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2005-04-13. Retrieved February 22, 2007.
- ^ "Outline of Himeji castle" (in Japanese). Himeji Information Web site. Retrieved February 22, 2007.
- ^ "Master plan of Himeji city" (in Japanese). Himeji city office. Archived from the original on February 8, 2007. Retrieved February 22, 2007.
- ^ "近畿エリアの12路線 のべ300駅に「駅ナンバー」を導入します！" ["Station numbers" will be introduced at a total of 300 stations on 12 lines in the Kinki area!]. westjr.co.jp (in Japanese). 20 July 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ "「駅ナンバー」一覧表" ["Station number" list] (PDF). westjr.co.jp (in Japanese). 20 July 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 November 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ 兵庫県統計書令和元年(2019) [Hyogo Prefectural Statistics Reiwa First Year (2019)] (in Japanese). Japan: Hyogo Prefecture. 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
External links
Media related to Himeji Station at Wikimedia Commons
