Sunrise Seto

The Sunrise Seto (サンライズ瀬戸, Sanraizu Seto) is an overnight sleeping car train service in Japan operated jointly by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West) since July 1998.[1][2]

Sunrise Seto
285 series EMU on a Sunrise Seto service, 2019
Overview
Service typeLimited express
StatusOperational
LocaleJapan
PredecessorSeto
First service10 July 1998
Current operator(s)JR Central, JR West
Route
StartTokyo
EndTakamatsu
Distance travelled804.7 km (500.0 mi)
Average journey timeapprox. 9 hours 30 minutes
Service frequency1 return working daily
Train number(s)Westbound: 5031M
Eastbound: 5032M
Line(s) usedJR East: JT Tōkaidō Main Line, Tōkaidō Freight Line

JR Central: Tōkaidō Main Line
JR West:  A  Tōkaidō Main Line,  A   S  Sanyō Main Line,  L  Uno Line,  M  Honshi-Bisan Line

JR Shikoku: Honshi-Bisan Line, Yosan Line, Dosan Line
On-board services
Seating arrangementsNone
Sleeping arrangementsPrivate compartments/open-plan sleeping areas
Catering facilitiesNone
Technical
Rolling stock285 series EMUs
Track gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification1,500 V DC
Operating speed130 km/h (80 mph)

Operations

The Sunrise Seto runs daily between Tokyo and Takamatsu in Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, taking about 9 hours 30 minutes for the 804.7 km (500.0 mi) journey.[2] The service operates in conjunction with the Sunrise Izumo service to Izumoshi between Tokyo and Okayama. The combined 14-car train departs from Tokyo, and stops at Yokohama, Atami, Numazu, Fuji, Shizuoka, Hamamatsu (final midnight stop), Himeji (first morning stop), and arrives at Okayama, where the train splits, with the Sunrise Izumo half of the train heading to Izumoshi.[3] Between Okayama and Takamatsu, the 7-car Sunrise Seto train stops at Kojima and Sakaide, before arriving in Takamatsu. The return train departs from Takamatsu, and is coupled with the Sunrise Izumo from Izumoshi at Okayama Station, departing together from there, and arriving at Tokyo Station in the next morning.

There are seasonal extended services which Sunrise Seto trains from Tokyo run beyond Takamatsu, to Kotohira on the Dosan Line. These extended service trains run during particular seasons (Differs each year), and during the holidays.

Station list

Line Station Distance (km) Time[3] Location
Name Japanese Between

stations

From

Tokyo

Westbound

(-> Takamatsu)

Eastbound

(-> Tokyo)

Ward / City Prefecture /

Metropolis

Tōkaidō Main Line Tokyo 東京 - 0.0 22:00 Departure 07:08 Arrival Chiyoda Tokyo
Yokohama 横浜 28.8 28.8 22:23 Arrival

22:24 Departure

06:44 Arrival

06:45 Departure

Yokohama Kanagawa
Atami 熱海 75.8 104.6 23:21 Arrival

23:23 Departure

05:43 Arrival

05:45 Departure

Atami Shizuoka
Numazu 沼津 21.6 126.2 23:39 Arrival

23:40 Departure

05:26 Arrival

05:27 Departure

Numazu
Fuji 富士 20.0 146.2 23:53 Arrival

23:54 Departure

05:09 Arrival

05:10 Departure

Fuji
Shizuoka 静岡 34.0 180.2 00:19 Arrival

00:20 Departure

04:38 Arrival

04:40 Departure

Shizuoka
Hamamatsu 浜松 76.9 257.1 01:11 Arrival

01:12 Departure

(Brief stop)

Hamamatsu
Toyohashi 豊橋 36.5 293.6 (Brief stop) Toyohashi Aichi
Nagoya 名古屋 72.4 366.0

(Brief stop)

Nagoya
Gifu 岐阜 30.3 396.3

(Brief stop)

Gifu Gifu
Maibara 米原 49.6 445.9 (Brief stop) Maibara Shiga
Ōsaka 大阪 110.5 556.4

(Brief stop)

00:32 Arrival

00:34 Departure

Osaka Osaka
Sannomiya 三ノ宮 30.6 587.0 00:12 Arrival

00:13 Departure

Kobe Hyogo
Sanyō Main Line Himeji 姫路 57.3 644.3 05:25 Arrival

05:26 Departure

23:33 Arrival

23:35 Departure

Himeji
Okayama 岡山 88.6 732.9 06:27 Arrival

(Decouple and separate from Sunrise Izumo)

06:31 Departure

22:23 Arrival

(Couple with Sunrise Izumo)

22:34 Departure

Okayama Okayama
Uno Line, Honshi-Bisan Line
Kojima 児島 27.8 760.7 06:52 Arrival

06:53 Departure

22:00 Arrival

22:01 Departure

Kurashiki
Yosan Line Sakaide 坂出 22.7 783.4 07:09 Arrival

07:10 Departure

21:44 Arrival

21:45 Departure

Sakaide Kagawa
Takamatsu 高松 21.3 804.7 07:27 Arrival 21:26 Departure Takamatsu
Seasonal extended services (from Tokyo) to Kotohira
Yosan Line Takamatsu 高松 - 804.7 07:54 Departure / Takamatsu Kagawa
Tadotsu 多度津 32.7 837.4 08:33 Arrival

08:35 Departure

Tadotsu
Dosan Line
Zentsūji 善通寺 6.0 843.4 08:43 Arrival

08:45 Departure

Zentsuji
Kotohira 琴平 5.3 848.7 08:52 Arrival Kotohira
  • Trains make brief stops for several reasons, here being crew changes at JR region boundaries. Passengers cannot board or get off the train when it makes such stops.
  • Regularly, only eastbound services will operate between Atami and Yokohama via the Tōkaidō Freight Line, where trains enter the line at Odawara and exit at Chigasaki back to the Tōkaidō Main Line.

Formation

Trains are formed of dedicated 7-car 285 series Sunrise Express electric multiple units (EMUs) owned by both JR Central and JR West. They are formed as shown below, with cars numbered 8 to 14 in the down (westbound) direction, with car 14 at the Tokyo end, and 1 to 7 in the up (Tokyo-bound) direction, with car 7 at the Tokyo end.[1]

Car No.1/82/93/104/115/126/137/14
Numbering KuHaNe 285SaHaNe 285MoHaNe 285SaRoHaNe 285MoHaNe 285SaHaNe 285KuHaNe 285
Accommodation B single berthsB single berthsB solo berthsSingle DX berthsB single berths
Nobinobi floor space
B single berthsB single berths
B single/ single-twin berthsB single/ single-twin berthsSunrise twin berthsB single/ single-twin berthsB single/ single-twin berths
Facilities   Mini saloon area, vending machine, shower Vending machine  
  • Car 2/9 has a wheelchair-accessible compartment
  • Each car has toilet facilities at one end.[4]
  • Smoking is permitted in car 6/13, and some compartments in car 4/11.[3]

Accommodation, Ticketing and Facilities

The Sunrise Express services consist of six types of accommodation. There are five types of berths: A Single Deluxe, B Sunrise Twin (2-person use), B Single Twin (1 or 2-person use), B Single and B Solo. There is also a carpeted sleeping space called the Nobinobi sleeping area.

To ride the train, several fares are required. All passengers require a basic fare ticket (乗車券, Jousha ken) and a limited express ticket (特急券, Tokkyu ken) based on the distance traveled. On top of these, those wishing to travel in a private room must also pay for a berth ticket (寝台券, Shindai ken), while those traveling in the Nobinobi sleeping area must pay a small seat reservation charge (座席指定料金, zaseki shitei ryoukin) in order to reserve an individual sleeping space.

The berth and seat reservation charges are fixed, regardless of where the journey starts and ends.

Accommodation Price Table[5][6]
Person Accommodation Price
1-person use berth A Single Deluxe ¥13980
B Single Twin ¥9600
B Single ¥7700
B Solo ¥6600
2-people use berths B Sunrise Twin ¥15400 for two people
B Single Twin ¥15000 for two people
1-person use seating Nobinobi sleeping area ¥530 seat reservation charge

(+200 for peak seasons)

(-200 for off seasons)

For example, a passenger traveling one-way from Tokyo to Okayama in regular season would have to pay for a basic fare ticket and a limited express ticket between Tokyo and Okayama (¥10670 and ¥3300, respectively) before adding on either the Nobinobi reservation charge or the berth ticket.

Tickets can be purchased up to one month before departure at a JR Midori no Madoguchi in Japan, or online through the JR West Seat Reservation website. Holders of the Japan Rail Pass can reserve a Nobinobi space for free, or reserve a berth by paying the limited express and berth charges.

A shower is located in cars 3 and 10. Passengers using the A Single Deluxe compartments are provided with a free shower card to use the showers on the train, while other passengers have to pay ¥330 for a shower card if they desire to use the showers. Lounges are also located in cars 3 and 10. Drink vending machines are available in cars 3, 5, 10 and 12.

History

Locomotive-hauled Seto service, October 1995

The Sunrise Seto services were introduced together with the Sunrise Izumo on 10 July 1998.[7] Previously, the Seto operated as a separate "Blue train" service connecting Tokyo with Takamatsu.[8] The Sunrise Izumo was intended to attract more passengers to train transportation by introducing newly designed trains and by reducing the journey time.

Ridership on overnight trains in Japan continues to decline, and from March 2009, the Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto became the only overnight sleeping car trains to operate west of Tokyo via the Tokaido Line.[9]

See also

References

  1. JR新幹線&特急列車ファイル [JR Shinkansen & Limited Express Train File]. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. 2008. p. 124. ISBN 978-4-330-00608-6.
  2. Haraguchi, Takayuki (2009). Encyclopedia of JR's Railway Cars: JR全車輌. Japan: Sekai Bunka. p. 34. ISBN 978-4-418-09905-4.
  3. JR時刻表 [JR Timetable]. Japan: Kotsu Shimbunsha. March 2013. p. 144. EAN 4910053110334.
  4. JR電車編成表 2013夏 [JR EMU Formations - Summer 2013]. Japan: JRR. May 2013. p. 122. ISBN 978-4-330-37313-3.
  5. "寝台券" [Berth ticket]. jr-odekake.net (in Japanese). West Japan Railway Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  6. "指定席券" [Reserved Seat Ticket]. jr-odekake.net (in Japanese). West Japan Railway Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  7. こだわりの新幹線&特急列車ガイド [In-depth Shinkansen & Limited Express Guide]. Japan: Ikaros Publishing. August 2000. pp. 194–195. ISBN 4-87149-284-2.
  8. 最新特急大カタログ [Modern Limited Express Catalogue]. Japan: JTB. November 1992. p. 110.
  9. Ogano, Minoru (March 2011). 新幹線・特急大図鑑2011 [Shinkansen & Limited Express Directory 2011]. Japan: JTB Publishing. p. 112. ISBN 978-4-533-08193-4.
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