Railway Construction Act
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The Railway Construction Act (Japanese: 鉄道敷設法, Hepburn: Tetsudō Fusetsu-hō, Law No. 4 of 1892) was promulgated by the Diet of Japan on June 21, 1892, and designated government support for a network of thirty-three railway lines covering most of Japan, with the exception of Hokkaidō. On April 11, 1922, the Diet amended the law to add an additional network of regional and local routes. Today, these lines form the backbone of the national railway network, JR (although JR has relinquished control of some of the more minor ones).
Lines designated by the Act of 1892
| Route | Year Completed | Line name at present |
|---|---|---|
| Lines of the central region | ||
| Hachiōji or Gotenba — Kōfu — Suwa — Ina District or NishiChikuma District — Nagoya | 1911 Hachiōji — Nagoya via NishiChikuma District by national railway | Chūō Main Line |
| Nagano or Shinonoi (present day in Nagano) — Matsumoto — connect to the previous clause route | 1902 Shinonoi — Shiojiri by national railway | Shinonoi Line |
| Kōfu — Fujikawa | 1928 Kōfu — Fuji by private railway, 1941 nationalized | Minobu Line |
| Line to connect the Central region lines and the Hokuriku region line | ||
| Gifu or Matsumoto — Takayama — Toyama | 1934 Gifu — Toyama by national railway | Takayama Main Line |
| Lines of the Hokuriku region | ||
| Tsuruga — Kanazawa — Toyama ; and branch to Nanao | 1899 Tsuruga — Toyama by national railway ; 1898 Tsubata — Nanao by private railway but not connected to main line until 1900 in Tsubata, 1907 nationalized | Hokuriku Main Line, Nanao Line |
| Line to connect the Hokuriku region line and the Echigo region line | ||
| Toyama — Naoetsu (present day Jōetsu) | 1913 by national railway | Hokuriku Main Line |
| Line of the Echigo region | ||
| Naoetsu or Maebashi or Toyono — Niigata and Shibata | 1899 Naoetsu — Nuttari Station in Niigata by private railway, 1907 nationalized; 1912 connected Shibata by national railway; 1931 connected Maebashi by national railway; 1929 connected Toyono partly private railway, 1944 nationalized | Shinetsu Main Line, Jōetsu Line, Iiyama Line |
| Line to connect the Echigo region line and the Ōu region lines | ||
| Shibata — Yonezawa ; or, Niitsu — Wakamatsu — Shirakawa or Motomiya | 1936 Shibata — Yonezawa by national railway; 1914 Niitsu — Kōriyama including 1906 nationalization section | Uetsu Main Line, Yonesaka Line, West Ban'etsu Line |
| Lines of the Ōu region (Mutsu Province and Dewa Province) | ||
| Fukushima — Yonezawa — Yamagata — Akita — Hirosaki — Aomori ; and branch to Sakata | 1905 Fukushima — Aomori by national railway; 1914 Shinjō — Sakata by national railway | Ōu Main Line, Rikuu West Line |
| Sendai or Ishinomaki — Tendō or Kogota — Funagata | 1937 Sendai — Yamagata by national railway; 1912 Ishinomaki — Kogota by private railway, 1919 nationalized; 1917 Kogota — Nagasawa Station (in Funagata) — Shinjō by national railway | Senzan Line, Ishinomaki Line, Rikuu East Line |
| Kitakami or Hanamaki — Yokote | 1924 Kitakami — Yokote by national railway | Kitakami Line |
| Morioka — Miyako or Yamada | 1934 Morioka — Miyako, 1935 connected Yamada by national railway | Yamada Line |
| Lines of the Sōbu region (Shimōsa Province and Musashi Province) | ||
| Tokyo — Chiba — Sakura — Chōshi ; and branch to Kisarazu | 1897 Honjo Station in Tokyo — Chōshi by private railway, 1907 nationalized ; 1912 connected Kisarazu including 1907 nationalization section | Sōbu Main Line, Uchibō Line |
| Line of the Jōban region (Hitachi Province and Iwaki Province) | ||
| Mito — Taira — Iwanuma | 1898 by private railway, 1906 nationalized | Jōban Line |
| Lines of the Kinki region | ||
| Nara — Tsuge (present day in Iga-City) | 1898 by private railway, 1907 nationalized | Kansai Main Line |
| Osaka or Yagi or Takada — Gojō — Wakayama | 1900 Takada — Wakayama by private railways, 1907 nationalized | Wakayama Line |
| Kyoto — Nara | 1896 by private railway, 1907 nationalized | Nara Line |
| Kyoto — Maizuru | 1910 Kyoto — Ayabe including 1907 nationalization section | San'in Main Line |
| Lines of the San'yō region | ||
| Mihara — Shimonoseki | 1901 by private railway, 1906 nationalized | Sanyō Main Line |
| Kaitaichi — Kure | 1903 by national railway | Kure Line |
| Line of the San'in region | ||
| Maizuru — Toyooka — Tottori — Matsue — Hamada — Yamaguchi | 1923 Fukuchiyama — Ogōri by national railway | San'in Main Line, Yamaguchi Line |
| Lines to connect the Sanyō region and the San'in region | ||
| Himeji — Ikuno or Sasayama — Maizuru or Sonobe ; or Tsuchiyama (present day eastern border of Kakogawa) — Fukuchiyama — Maizuru | 1906 Himeji — Ikuno — Wadayama by private railway, 1906 nationalized; 1904 Amagasaki — Sasayama — Tanikawa — Fukuchiyama — Ayabe — Maizuru by private railway, 1907 nationalized 1924 Kakogawa — Tanikawa by private reilway, 1943 nationalized | Bantan Line, Fukuchiyama Line, Maizuru Line, Kakogawa Line |
| Himeji — Tottori ; or Okayama — Tsuyama — Yonago — Sakai ; or Kurashiki or Tamashima (present day in Kurashiki) — Sakai | 1936 Himeji — Tsuyama by national railway; 1898 Okayama — Tsuyama by private railway, 1944 nationalized; 1932 Tsuyama — Tottori by national railway; 1928 Kurashiki — Yonago by national railway; 1902 Yonago — Sakai by national railway | Kishin Line, Tsuyama Line, Imbi Line, Hakubi Line |
| Hiroshima — Hamada | Not completed | |
| Lines of the Shikoku region | ||
| Kotohira — Kōchi — Susaki | 1935 by national railway | Dosan Line |
| Tokushima — connect to the previous clause route | 1914 Tokushima — Awa-Ikeda including 1907 nationalization section | Tokushima Line |
| Tadotsu — Imabari — Matsuyama | 1927 by national railway | Yosan Line |
| Lines of the Kyūshū region | ||
| Saga — Sasebo and Nagasaki | 1898 via Takeo and Ōmura by private railway, 1907 nationalized; 1934 via Kashima, by national railway | Sasebo Line, Ōmura Line, Nagasaki Main Line |
| Kumamoto — Uto — Misumi ; and branch line as Uto — Yatsushiro — Kagoshima | To Misumi 1899 by private railway, 1907 nationalized; To Kagoshima 1909 via Hitoyoshi and Hayato, including 1907 nationalization section; 1927 via Minamata and Sendai by national railway | Misumi Line, Kagoshima Main Line, Hisatsu Line, Hisatsu Orange Railway |
| Kumamoto — Ōita | 1928 by national railway | Hōhi Main Line |
| Kokura — Ōita — Miyazaki — Kagoshima | 1923 via Kobayashi and Yoshimatsu including nationalization sections; 1932 via Takarabe by national railway | Nippō Main Line, Kitto Line |
| Iizuka — Haruda (present day Chikushino) | 1929 including 1907 nationalization section | Chikuhō Main Line |
| Kurume — Yamaga — Kumamoto | Not completed | |
Notable main lines before the Act
The lines in following list don't appear the act, because operated already or soon.
- Tokyo — Gotenba — Nagoya — Gifu — Maibara — Kusatsu — Kyoto — Osaka — Kōbe
- Tokyo — Hachiōji
- Takasaki — Shinonoi — Nagano — Toyono — Naoetsu
- Maibara — Tsuruga
- Ōmiya — Takasaki — Maebashi
- Tokyo — Ōmiya — Shirakawa — Fukushima — Iwanuma — Sendai — Kogota — Kitakami — Morioka — Aomori
- Tokyo — Mito
- Nagoya — Kameyama — Tsuge — Kusatsu
- Osaka — Ōji — Nara
- Ōji — Takada
- Kōbe — Himeji — Okayama — Mihara
- Marugame — Tadotsu — Kotohira
- Moji — Kokura — Hakata — Tosu — Kurume — Ōmuta — Kumamoto
- Tosu — Saga
- Wakamatsu — Iizuka