The Shinano Railway Co., Ltd. (しなの鉄道株式会社, Shinano Tetsudō Kabushiki-gaisha) is a Japanese third-sector railway operating company established in 1996 to operate passenger railway services on the section of the JR East Shinetsu Main Line within Nagano Prefecture when it was separated from the JR East network in October 1997, coinciding with the opening of the Nagano Shinkansen (Hokuriku Shinkansen) from Takasaki to Nagano. The company was founded on May 1, 1996, and has its headquarters in Ueda, Nagano.[1]
 | |
Native name | しなの鉄道 |
|---|---|
| Company type | Third sector |
| Genre | Rail transport |
| Founded | May 1, 1996 |
| Headquarters | , Japan |
Area served | Nagano Prefecture |
Key people | Takeharu Fujii (President) |
| Services | Passenger railway |
| Owner | Nagano Prefecture (73.64%) Nagano City (3.88%) Governments of Ueda, Komoro, Chikuma, Saku, Tōmi, Karuizawa, Miyota, Sakaki (totalling 12.98%) Hachijūni Bank (2.69%) Others (totalling 6.81%) |
Number of employees | 251 (As of 1 March 2015[update]) |
| Website | www |
Shareholders
editShares in the company are owned by Nagano Prefecture, the cities of Nagano, Ueda, Komoro, Chikuma, Saku and Tōmi, the towns of Karuizawa, Miyota, Sakaki, Shinano, and Iizuna and private-sector businesses.[1]
Lines
edit- Shinano Railway Line (65.1 km, Karuizawa - Shinonoi)
- Kita-Shinano Line (37.3 km, Nagano - Myōkō-Kōgen)
On October 1, 1997, the company took over control of local passenger operations on the 65.1 km section of the JR East Shinetsu Main Line between Karuizawa and Shinonoi. This section is called the Shinano Railway Line.
From March 14, 2015, the company took over control of local passenger operations on the 37.3 km section of the JR East Shinetsu Main Line between Nagano and Myōkō-Kōgen.[2] This section is called the Kita-Shinano Line.[2]
History
editThe company was founded on May 1, 1996, and started railway business on the Shinano Railway Line on October 1, 1997.[1]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c 会社概要／沿革 [Company Overview and History] (in Japanese). Japan: Shinano Railway. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
- ^ a b Osano, 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.
External links
edit- Official website (in Japanese)