West Japan Railway Company

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West Japan Railway Company
西日本旅客鉄道株式会社
Company typePublic KK
TYO: 9021
Osaka SE: 9021
Nagoya SE: 9021
Fukuoka SE: 9021
IndustryPrivate railroad
PredecessorJapan National Railways
FoundedApril 1, 1987 (1987-04-01) (privatization of JNR)
Headquarters
4-24 Shibata 2-chome, Kita-ku, Osaka, 530-8341
,
Japan
Area served
San'yo Shinkansen
Kansai region
Chugoku region
Hokuriku region
Shin'etsu region
Key people
Takayuki Sasaki
(Chairman of the Board)
(Director)
Seiji Manabe
(President)
(Representative Director)
(Executive Officer)
Noritaka Kurauchi (倉内 憲孝)
(Director)[1]
ProductsICOCA (a rechargeable contactless smart card)
Servicespassenger railways
bus services
sales of goods and food services
real estate
other related businesses [2]
RevenueIncrease ¥1,287,679 million (2012)[3]
Increase ¥109,799 million (2012)[3]
Decrease ¥29,489 million (2012)[3]
Total assetsDecrease ¥2,642,994 million (2012)[3]
Total equityIncrease ¥733,546 million (2012)[3]
OwnerJapan Trustee Services Bank (Trust Unit) (5.53%)
The Master Trust Bank of Japan (Trust Unit) (5.39%)
Mizuho Corporate Bank (3.33%) [2]
Number of employees
consolidated: 45,402
non-consolidated: 26,778 (as of March 31, 2012)[4]
DivisionsRailway operations,
Shinkansen management [2]
Subsidiaries64 consolidated subsidiaries,
including Sagano Scenic Railway[2]
WebsiteOfficial Website
  West Japan Railway Company
JR West 500 Series Shinkansen Nozomi train
Operation
National railwayJapan Railways Group
Infrastructure companyJapan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency
Statistics
Ridership1.778 billion per year [2]
Passenger km52.614 billion per year [2]
System length
Total5,012.7 km (3,114.7 mi) [2]
Double track2,253.2 km (1,400.1 mi) (44.9%) [2]
Electrified3,385.7 km (2,103.8 mi) (67.5%) [2]
High-speed644.0 km (400.2 mi) (12.8%) [2]
Track gauge
Main1067
High-speed1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Electrification
Main1,500 V DC overhead catenary 2,447 km (1,520 mi) [5]
20 kV AC 60 Hz overhead　278.0 km (172.7 mi)
Hokuriku Main Line
(Tsuruga - Itoigawa)[5]
25 kV AC 60 Hz overhead　644.0 km (400.2 mi)
San'yo Shinkansen[5]
Features
No. tunnels1,016[5]
Tunnel length667 km (414 mi)[5]
Longest tunnelThe Shin-Kanmon Tunnel
18,713 metres (61,394 ft)
San'yo Shinkansen
(Shin-Shimonoseki - Kokura)[5]
No. bridges28,568[5]
Longest bridgeThe Yoshii River Bridge
669 m (2,195 ft)
San'yo Shinkansen
(Okayama - Hyōgo)[5]
No. stations1,222[2]
Map
Service area
Route MapTemplate:Ja icon
ICOCA Service AreaTemplate:Ja icon

West Japan Railway Company (西日本旅客鉄道株式会社, Nishi-Nihon Ryokaku Tetsudō Kabushiki-gaisha), also referred to as JR West (JR西日本, Jeiāru Nishi-Nihon), is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshū. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka.[2]

History

JR West was incorporated as a business corporation (kabushiki kaisha) on April 1, 1987 as part of the breakup of government-owned Japanese National Railways (JNR). Initially, it was a wholly owned subsidiary of the JNR Settlement Corporation (JNRSC), a special company created to hold the assets of the former JNR while they were shuffled among the new JR companies.

For the first four years of its existence, JR West leased its highest-revenue line, the Sanyō Shinkansen, from the separate Shinkansen Holding Corporation. JR West purchased the line in October 1991 at a cost of 974.1 billion JPY (about 7.2 billion USD) in long-term payable debt.

JNRSC sold 68.3% of JR West in an initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in October 1996. After JNRSC was dissolved in October 1998, its shares of JR West were transferred to the government-owned Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation (JRCC), which merged into the Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency (JRTT) as part of a bureaucratic reform package in October 2003. JRTT offered all of its shares in JR West to the public in an international IPO in 2004, ending the era of government ownership of JR West. JR West is now listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nagoya Stock Exchange, Osaka Securities Exchange and the Fukuoka Stock Exchange.

JR West continues to be burdened by debt sustained by JNR up to 1987, although through refinancing, it has managed to halve its interest payments over the last ten years.

Lines

Sanyō Shinkansen

Main article: Sanyō Shinkansen
100 Series Shikansen train

JR West's highest-grossing line is the Sanyō Shinkansen high speed rail line between Osaka and Fukuoka. The Sanyō Shinkansen alone accounts for about 40% of JR West's passenger revenues. The company also operates Hakata Minami Line, a short commuter line with Shinkansen trains in Fukuoka.

Urban Network

The "Urban Network" is JR West's name for its commuter rail lines in the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area. These lines together comprise 610 km of track, have 245 stations and account for about 40% of JR West's passenger revenues. Urban Network stations are equipped to handle ICOCA fare cards. Train control on these lines is highly automated, and during peak hours trains run as often as every two minutes.

JR West's Urban Network competes with a number of private commuter rail operators around Osaka, the "Big 4" being Hankyū Railway/Hanshin Railway (Hankyu bought Hanshin in 2005), Keihan Railway, Kintetsu, and Nankai Railway. JR West's market share in the region is roughly equal to that of the Big 4 put together, largely due to its comprehensive network and high-speed commuter trains (Special Rapid Service trains on the Kobe and Kyoto lines operate at up to 130 km/h).

223 Series EMU for the Urban Network

Those in italics are announcement names.

Intercity and regional lines

Limited Express Yakumo on the Hakubi Line
Diesel train on the Tsuyama Line express service

A number of other lines account for more than half of JR West's track mileage. These lines primarily handle business and leisure travel between smaller cities and rural areas in western Japan. They account for about 20% of the company's passenger revenues.

Intercity lines

Regional lines

Other businesses

Headquarters of JR West in Kita-ku, Osaka

JR West subsidiaries include:

References

  1. ^ West Japan Railway Company (April 27, 2012). "Change in Representative Directors (translation from Japanese)" (PDF). Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l West Japan Railway Company. "2011 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d e West Japan Railway Company (April 27, 2012). "FY 3/2012 Financial Results Flash Report" (PDF). Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  4. ^ West Japan Railway Company (April 27, 2012). "Supplemental Data Fiscal Year ended March 31, 2011" (PDF). Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h West Japan Railway Company. "Company Profile 2007-2008 ebook". Retrieved July 6, 2009.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to JR West.
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