The Chiba Urban Monorail (千葉都市モノレール, Chiba Toshi Monorēru) is a two-line suspendedmonorail system located in Chiba, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. It is owned and operated by Chiba Urban Monorail Co., Ltd (千葉都市モノレール株式会社, Chiba toshi monorēru kabushikigaisha), a third-sector company established on March 20, 1979. Investors include the city of Chiba.
The first segment (Line 2 from Sports Center Station to Chishirodai Station) opened on March 28, 1988, also the rest by March 24, 1999. PASMO and Suica contactless smart cards can be used to purchase fares. It is one of the only two systems in Japan that accepts only these cards and not other Mutual Usage IC cards.[1]
It is the world's longest suspended monorail system with a track length of 15.2 kilometres (9.4 mi).[2]
Routes
Line 1
Line 1 connects Chiba-Minato Station and Kenchō-mae Station by a 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi) multiple-track route. Operating at 1,500 V DC, trains make four intermediate stops.
Line 2 connects Chiba-Minato Station and Chishiro-dai Station. Operating at 1,500 V DC, trains make 13 intermediate stops on the 13.5-kilometre (8.4 mi) multiple-track route.
On 4 September 2019, Chiba City announced that it had decided to discontinue plans to extend the monorail hospital route, and not to introduce a monorail on the Inage route.[2]
1988/03/28 – Line 2 between Sports Center Station and Chishirodai Station opened.[3]
1990/09/18 – The total number of passengers reached 10 million.
1991/06/12 – Line 2 opened between Chiba Station and Sports Center Station.[3]
1994/03/07 – The total number of passengers reached 50 million.
1995/08/01 – Line 1 between Chiba Minato Station and Chiba Station opened.
1997/06/17 – The total number of passengers reached 100 million.
1999/03/24 – Line 1 between Chiba Station and Kencho-mae Station opened. At the same time, the running time for Line 2 was shortened by about 10%, and automatic ticket machines were installed at all stations.
2006 – Chiba Prefecture pulls out from funding the monorail due to unsatisfactory ridership numbers.[2]
2006/06/21 – A train collided with the arm of a crane truck working on a sewer line between Sakusabe Station and Chiba-Koen Station on Line 2.
2007/03/19 – The four-car trains that had been in service were discontinued.
^ abcd"千葉都市モノレール５億人達成 開業から３３年" [Chiba Urban Monorail reaches 500 million people 33 years after opening]. sankei.com (in Japanese). 5 June 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
^ abcd曽根, 悟 (2011). 歴史でめぐる鉄道全路線 公営鉄道・私鉄 [All railway lines in history Public railway, private railway] (in Japanese). Vol. 30. Tokyo: Asahi Shimbun.
^"駅ナンバリングを導入します 2019.02.20" [Introducing station numbering 2019.02.20]. chiba-monorail.co.jp. 20 February 2019. Archived from the original on 23 February 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
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