Gonō Line

Gonō Line
Senjōjiki Station
Overview
Native name	五能線
Type	Heavy rail
Locale	Aomori, Akita prefectures
Termini	Higashi-Noshiro Kawabe
Stations	43
Operation
Opened	1908
Owner	JR East
Rolling stock	KiHa 40 series, KiHa 48 series
Technical
Line length	147.2 km (91.5 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	None
Route map

The Gonō Line (五能線, Gonō-sen) is a railway line in Japan linking Higashi-Noshiro Station in Akita Prefecture with Kawabe Station in Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of Honshu. The line stretches 147.2 km along the Sea of Japan coast with a total of 43 stations. The Gonō Line is operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East).

The scenery from the train window

Station list

• All trains, including Fukaura rapid services, stop at every station. For the Resort Shirakami limited express service, please see its article.
• Trains may pass at stations marked "◇", "v", or "^".

Rolling stock

KiHa 40 series DMU Fukaura

• KiHa 40 series
• KiHa 48 series

History

The first section of the Gonō Line was opened by the Japanese Government Railways (JGR) from Higashi-Noshiro to Noshiro in 1908. When every JGR railway line was assigned a line name on October 12, 1909, this short railway was named the Noshiro Line (能代線, Noshiro-sen). In 1926 it was extended to Iwadate and in 1932 extended to Mutsu-Iwasaki.

The private Mutsu Railway (陸奥鉄道, Mutsu-tetsudō) began operations on September 25, 1918 linking Kawabe with Goshogawara. The line was extended to Mutsu-Morita on October 21, 1924 with the extension called the Goshogawara Line (五所川原線, Goshogawara-sen). The line was extended to Ajigasawa on May 15, 1925. The company was nationalized in 1927, with the Goshogawara Line being absorbed into the Mutsu Railway. The line was extended to Mutsu-Akaishi on November 26, 1929 and connected to the Gonō Line on July 30, 1936, at which time the entire line adopted its current name.

A CTC system was installed in 1986. With the privatization of the Japanese National Railways (successor of JGR) on April 1, 1987, the Gonō Line came under the control of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East).

See also

• List of railway lines in Japan

References

• Harris, Ken; Clarke, Jackie (2008). Jane's World Railways 2008-2009. Jane's Information Group. ISBN 0-7106-2861-7.

Further reading

• 五能線ガイドブック [Gono Line Guidebook] (in Japanese). Japan: Mumyosha. 10 April 2002. ISBN 978-4895443074.
• Endo, Isao (15 July 2016). 五能線物語 「奇跡のローカル線」を生んだ最強の現場力 [Gono Line Story] (in Japanese). Japan: PHP Institute, Inc. ISBN 978-4569830094.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gono Line.

• JR East website (in Japanese)