The Chaokai railway (simplified Chinese: 朝开铁路; traditional Chinese: 朝開鐵路; pinyin: Cháokāi Tiělù) is a 58.4 km (36.3 mi) freight-only[1] railway line of the China Railway in Jilin, connecting Chaoyangchuan on the Changtu Railway with Kaishantun. The line formerly crossed the Tumen River to reach Sambong in modern-day North Korea, but the bridge has since had the tracks removed, and is in use as a road crossing.[1]

Chaokai railway
朝开铁路
Overview
StatusOperational
OwnerTiantu Railway (1923–1933)
Manchukuo National Railway (1933–1945)
China Railway (since 1945)
LocaleJilin
Termini
Stations6
Service
TypeHeavy rail,
Regional rail
History
Opened1923 (Tiantu Ry, narrow gauge)
March 1934 (Manchukuo National Ry, std gauge)
Technical
Line length58.4 km (36.3 mi)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Old gauge762 mm (2 ft 6 in)
Route map

0.0
Chaoyangchuan 朝阳川
9.7
Sanfengdong 三峰洞
18.6
Longjing 龙井
28.7
Dongshengyong 东盛涌
41.4
Badaohe 八道河
58.4
Kaishantun 开山屯
Tumen River (↑China—DPRK↓)
60.6
Sambong

History

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In 1917, the Chosen Government Railway's (Sentetsu) Hamgyeong Line reached Hoeryeong.[2] Soon afterwards the Domun Railway began construction of its mainline from Hoeryeong to Donggwanjin, reaching Sambong (then called Sangsambong) in 1920, Jongseon in 1922 and finally Donggwanjin in 1924.[3] The narrow-gauge Tiantu Railway (天圖鐵道, Chinese pinyin: Tiāntú Tiědào; Japanese: Tento Tetsudō), opened in 1923, signed a cross-border operational agreement with the Domun Railway on 26 June 1926,[4] after which a bridge across the Tumen River between Sangsambong and Kaishantun was opened on 30 September 1927.[1] In 1929 the Domun Railway was nationalised and absorbed by Sentetsu,[3] and on 1 August 1933, Sentetsu's new line from the port at Unggi to Hoeryoeng was completed.[5] In the same year, the Manchukuo National Railway ("MNR") completed its Jingtu Line from Xinjing (now Changchun), the capital of Manchukuo, to Tumen.

In October 1933, the South Manchuria Railway (Mantetsu) took over management of Sentetsu's entire line from Ch'ŏngjin to Unggi,[6] and at that time, the Hoeryŏng–Sangsambong section was added to the existing (Wŏnsan–Ch'ŏngjin) Hamgyŏng Line, the Sambong–Namyang section was renamed the North Chosen West Line (Puksŏn-sŏbusŏn, 북선서부선), and the Namyang–Unggi section was renamed North Chosen East Line (Puksŏn-tongbusŏn, 북선동부선).[7] Connecting the Jingtu Line with the North Chosen East Line would create a short, direct route from Japan to Xinjing and Harbin, and so National Railway bought the Tiantu Railway in 1933.

The MNR began work on the Chaokai Line in 1933, regauging the Tiantu Railway's line from 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) narrow gauge to standard gauge (1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in)) and making a shorter, more direct line from Kaishantun to Chaoyangchuan on the Jingtu Line, opening the new line for use at the end of March 1934.[1] The line at once became a very important link between Japan and the Asian mainland via the Korean port of Rajin.

In 1940 there were seven passenger trains between Chaoyangchuan and Sambong and eight from Sambong to Chaoyanghcuan, with a second-class ticket for the full distance costing 1 Manchukuo yuan 8 chiao 3 fen, and a third-class ticket costing 1 yuan 1 chiao. Travel time ranged from as short as 3 hours (Train 1220, leaving Sambong at 9:55 am and arriving at Chaoyangchuan at 2:05 pm), to as long as 4 hours 5 minutes (Train 1222, leaving Sambong at 4:40 pm and arriving at Chaoyangchuan at 8:45 pm). There were also several trains over shorter relations, including Chaoyangchuan–Badaohe and Chaoyangchuan–Longjing.[8] Two KiHa-3 class railcars were assigned to passenger services on this line.[9]

By the time the last timetable was issued prior to the start of the Pacific War in November 1942, service on the line had been cut back to three return trips between Chaoyangchuan and Sambong – one each in the morning, afternoon, and evening. These were still operated by 3rd class railcar.[9]

Route

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Distance Station name
Total; km S2S; km Current name Former name Opened Connections
0.0 0.0 Chaoyangchuan
朝阳川
1923 Changtu Railway
9.7 9.7 Sangfengdong
三峰洞
1923
18.6 8.9 Longjing
龙井
1923 Helong Railway (zh)
28.7 10.1 Dongshengyong
东盛涌
1923
41.4 12.7 Badaohe
八道河
1923
58.4 17.0 Kaishantun
开山屯
1923
Tumen River China–North Korea border 1927 Closed 1945
60.6 2.2 Sambong
삼봉
Sangsambong
상삼봉
1920 Korean State Railway Hambuk Line

References

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  1. ^ a b c d 京図線 開山屯 [Beijing map line mountain Tuen Tuen] (in Japanese).
  2. ^ Japanese Government Railways (1937). 鉄道停車場一覧 昭和12年10月1日現在 [The List of the Stations as of 1 October 1937] (in Japanese). Tokyo: Kawaguchi Printing Company. pp. 498–501, 504–505.
  3. ^ a b 朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 669, 28 March 1929 (in Japanese)
  4. ^ 浦野起央 (1955). 朝鮮の領土: 【分析・資料・文献】. 三和書籍. pp. 160–161. ISBN 978-4-86251-202-4.
  5. ^ 朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 1963, 26 July 1933 (in Japanese)
  6. ^ 朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), 1 October 1933 (in Japanese)
  7. ^ 南満州鉄道株式会社全路線 [South Manchurian Railway Co., Ltd. All routes]. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  8. ^ "1940 timetable". 百年の鉄道旅行 [100-year rail travel].
  9. ^ a b Tōa Travel Co. (東亜旅行社), Ministry of Railways Combined Timetable 1 November 1942 (鐵道省編纂時刻表昭和17年11月1日)
  • Ma Qianli; Wang Kaiji (1983). 中国铁路建筑编年简史(1881-1981) [Brief History of Chinese Railway Architecture (1881–1981))]. Beijing: China Railway Publishing House.