The Banshū Railway (播州鉄道, Banshū Tetsudō) opened the line in 1915. The railway was acquired by the Bantan Railway (播丹鉄道, Bantan Tetsudō) in 1923 and nationalised in 1943 together with other Bantan Railway lines, i.e. the Kakogawa Line, the Takasago Line, the Miki Line and the Kajiya Line.[1]
Freight services ceased in 1974, and in 1985 the Hojo Railway Company commenced operating the line.
Accidents
On 31 March 1945 a Kawanishi N1K fighter on a test flight made an emergency landing near Abiki that damaged the line resulting in a derailment that killed 11 and injured 104 passengers.
