The Ainokaze Toyama Railway (あいの風とやま鉄道株式会社, Ainokaze Toyama Tetsudō Kabushiki-gaisha) is a Japanese third-sector railway operating company established in 2012 to operate passenger railway services on the section of the JR WestHokuriku Main Line within Toyama Prefecture when it was separated from the JR West network in March 2015, coinciding with the opening of the Hokuriku Shinkansen extension from Nagano to Kanazawa. The company was founded on 24 July 2012, and has its headquarters in Toyama in Toyama Prefecture.[1]
Shareholders
As of 2013[update], Toyama Prefecture is the main shareholder, owning 63% of the company's shares, 27% is owned by municipalities within Toyama Prefecture, and 10% is owned by private-sector businesses.[1]
While the Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line officially stretches from Kurikara in the west to Ichiburi in the east, most services terminate at Tomari to the east, with a same-platform transfer provided to Echigo Tokimeki Railway Nihonkai Hisui Line services.[2] Some through services continue over the Echigo Tokimeki Railway Nihonkai Hisui Line to and from Itoigawa.[2] To the west, most services continue to and from Kanazawa over the IR Ishikawa Railway Line.[2] In addition to all-stations "Local" (普通, futsū) services, limited-stop "Rapid" services named Ainokaze Liner (あいの風ライナー) operate between Tomari and Toyama or Kanazawa during the weekday morning and evening peaks. A supplementary liner fare of 300 yen is required to board these services, and all seats are reserved.[2]
ICOCA and other compatible IC farecards can be used on the line since 26 March 2015.[2]
Stations
Legend | - All Ainokaze liner trains pass O - All Ainokaze liner trains stop
Services on the line use a fleet of 16 two-car 521 series (2nd-batch type) electric multiple unit (EMU) trains and five three-car 413 series EMUs (former sets B01 to B03, B07, and B10) acquired from JR West.[3] The 521 series trains will receive a new livery with a blue wave design on the seaward (north) side and a green wave design on the landward (south) side.[2] While both the Ainokaze Toyama Railway and neighbouring IR Ishikawa Railway operate similar 521 series trains, the respective operators' trains do not run coupled together.[2]
As of 1 October 2017[update], the 521 series and 413 series fleets are as follows.[4]
Set AM03 was modified for use as a special-event train, named Toyama Emaki (とやま絵巻) with new seat covers and a new external livery, returning to service on 28 August 2016.[4] This train is also used to provide additional capacity on regular services during the peak periods.[5]
Future developments
From the first half of fiscal 2018, a 413 series set will be rebuilt as a tourist train, returning to service on the line in the second half of fiscal 2018.[5]
Five new 521-1000 series two-car sets are scheduled to be introduced over a period of six years, with the first set delivered in December 2017.[6] These sets will replace the ageing 413 series EMUs.[6]
History
The company was founded on 24 July 2012.[1] The company name "Ainokaze Toyama Railway" was announced on 30 May 2013.[7]Ainokaze refers to a north-easterly breeze that blows in the region in spring and summer, and is mentioned in the Man'yōshū collection of Japanese poetry.[7]
^ abc"Toyama-railway.jp" 会社概要 [Company overview] (in Japanese). Japan: Ainokaze Toyama Railway. 2013. Archived from the original on 22 October 2012. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
^ abcdefghOsano, Kagetoshi (March 2015). 北陸新幹線並行在来線各社の姿 [Guide to companies operating conventional lines alongside the Hokuriku Shinkansen]. Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 44, no. 371. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. pp. 28–33.
^Terada, Hirokazu (June 2015). 北陸新幹線長野ー金沢間開業 並行在来線4社5路線を訪ねて（１） [Visiting the 5 parallel conventional lines of 4 companies following the opening of the Hokuriku Shinkansen between Nagano and Kanazawa]. Japan Railfan Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 55, no. 650. Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. pp. 42–47.
^ ab観光列車の整備について [Tourist train details] (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan: Ainokaze Toyama Railway. 16 November 2015. Archived from the original(PDF) on 1 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
^ abあいの風とやま鉄道521系1000番台2両が甲種輸送される [Ainokaze Toyama Railway 521-1000 series 2-car set delivered]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 13 December 2017. Archived from the original on 13 December 2017. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
^ abc富山県の北陸新幹線並行在来線、新社名は「あいの風とやま鉄道」に内定! [New company name "Ainokaze Toyama Railway" chosen for old line running parallel to Hokuriku Shinkansen in Toyama Prefecture]. Mynavi News (in Japanese). Japan: Mynavi Corporation. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
^しなの鉄道（株）、えちごトキめき鉄道（株）、あいの風とやま鉄道（株）及びＩＲいしかわ鉄道（株）申請の第一種鉄道事業許可について [Details of railway business approval for Shinano Railway, Echigo Tokimeki Railway Company, Ainokaze Toyama Railway, and IR Ishikawa Railway]. News release (in Japanese). Japan: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. 26 February 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
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