Furano Line

The Nihongo|Furano Line|富良野線|Furano-sen is part of the Hokkaido Railway Company network in Hokkaidō, Japan. It connects Furano Station in the city of Furano and Asahikawa Station in the city of Asahikawa. Popular with tourists, it has recently come to serve commuters in the bedroom towns that are developing as suburbs of Asahikawa.

Data

*Length: 54.8 km
*Stations: 18, including terminals
*Gauge: 1067 mm
*Multiple-track sections: None
*Electrified sections: None
*Two-track stations: Six

History

The Furano Line opened on September 1, 1899 as the Nihongo|Hokkaidō Kansetsu Railway|北海道官設鉄道|Hokkaidō Kansetsu Tetsudō, operating between Asahikawa and Biei Stations. In the next month, service extended to Kami-Furano Station, and in the following year it reached Shimo-Furano Station. In 1909 it became part of the Kushiro Line from Asahikawa Station to Kushiro Station, but in 1913 it took its present name and covered the route from Asahikawa Station to Shimo-Furano Station. The eruption of Mount Tokachi on May 24, 1926 caused a protracted interruption of service between Biei and Kami-Furano. In 1942, Shimo-Furano Station changed its name to Furano Station. On April 1, 1987, with the breakup of the Japanese National Railways, the line became part of the Hokkaido Railways. In 2007, the station-numbering plan took effect.

Operations

All trains are local trains within the Furano Line. One train continues past Furano to Obihiro Station as a "Karikachi" Express train; the rest operate only within the Furano Line, half covering the route between Asahikawa and Biei. Nearly all rolling stock is JR Hokkaidō Kiha 150 Diesel Multiple Units.

tations

Station numbers, names, and other lines serving the stations are as follows. Asterisks denote two-track stations where trains can pass.

*T30 Furano Station (Nemuro Main Line)
*F44 Gakuden Station
*F43 Shikauchi Station
*F42* Naka-Furano Station
*F41 Lavender Farm Station (open seasonally)
*F40 Nishinaka Station
*F39* Kami-Furano Station
*F38* Bibaushi Station
*F37* Biei Station
*F36 Kita-Biei Station
*F35* Chiyogaoka Station
*F34 Nishi-Seiwa Station
*F33* Nishi-Kagura Station
*F32 Nishi-Mizuho Station
*F31 Nishi-Goryō Station
*F30 Midorigaoka Station
*F29 Kaguraoka Station
*A28 Asahikawa Station (Hakodate Main Line, Sōya Main Line)

External links

* [http://www2.jrhokkaido.co.jp/global/english/rmap/route_map.pdf Route Map] JR Hokkaido.
* [http://www5.hokkaido-np.co.jp/nature/station/index.html 北海道ふるさとの駅] The Hokkaido Shimbun Press.

ource

This article incorporates material from 富良野線 ("Furano-sen") in the Japanese Wikipedia, retrieved on January 15, 2008.