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Ise Railway line3 min read

Ise Line

伊勢線

The Ise Line (伊勢線, Ise-sen) is a 22.3-kilometre railway line in Mie Prefecture, running from Kawarada Station in Yokkaichi to Tsu Station in Tsu.

It is the only line of the third-sector operator Ise Railway (伊勢鉄道), is laid to 1,067 mm narrow gauge, and is not electrified; it has ten stations and is double-tracked between Kawarada and Nakaseko, single-track from Nakaseko to Tsu. Built as a shortcut between the Kansai Main Line and the Kisei Main Line, it lets trains run directly between the Yokkaichi area and Tsu without the detour through Kameyama, and most of its long-distance traffic consists of JR Central limited expresses and rapid services that through-run over it.

Suzuka5 km
Route of the Ise Line · Mie · Boundaries: MLIT / GSI / Japan Post

History

The route began as a national project. It was added to the railway construction plan on 16 June 1961 and became a construction line of the Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation in 1964; construction began on 4 November 1965. The corporation built it as a trunk-grade shortcut so that Kisei Main Line trains, which then had to detour through Kameyama and reverse direction there, could reach Nagoya more directly.

The Ise Line opened on 1 September 1973 as a Japanese National Railways line, running 26.0 km from Minami-Yokkaichi on the Kansai Main Line to Tsu, with six new stations: Suzuka, Tamagaki, Inō, Nakaseko, Kawage and Higashi-Ichishida. Almost immediately it began carrying through express trains: from 1 October 1973 the limited express Kuroshio (one round trip) and the express Kishū (three round trips) were rerouted off the Kameyama route to run via the new line, shortening the path between Nagoya and the Kii Peninsula.

Through-service patterns then shifted over the following decade. On 2 October 1978 the Kuroshio service to and from Nagoya was discontinued and the limited express Nanki was introduced over the line, while on 17 May 1982 the express Kishū was returned to the Kameyama route. As a lightly used JNR line, the Ise Line was designated a second-phase Specified Local Line on 22 June 1984 under the Japanese National Railways Reconstruction Act, marking it for conversion to third-sector operation or closure.

Rather than close, the line was handed to a new local operator. The third-sector company Ise Railway was established on 1 October 1986, and on 27 March 1987 the JNR Ise Line was abolished and the route reopened under Ise Railway, now measured at 22.3 km from Kawarada to Tsu. On the same day Ise-Ueno Station opened and Inō Station was renamed Suzuka Circuit Inō. The line carries spectators to the nearby Suzuka Circuit on race days.

Under Ise Railway the line was upgraded for faster through running by JR. The rapid service Mie began operating over it on 10 March 1990, running between Nagoya and the Kisei and Sangū lines; on 16 March 1991 Tokuda Station opened and the line's maximum speed was raised to 110 km/h. Double-tracking between Kawarada and Nakaseko was completed in 1993, with the Kawarada–Tamagaki stretch finished by 7 March and the Tamagaki–Nakaseko stretch by 4 July, increasing the line's capacity.

Although most of its passengers ride straight through on JR trains, housing development along the route and the arrival of Suzuka International University (now Suzuka University) near Nakaseko Station brought more commuters and students to its stations, and from the 1996 fiscal year the Ise Railway turned a profit for the first time. The JR Central limited express Nanki and rapid Mie use the Ise Line to through-run between Nagoya and destinations on the Kisei Main Line (toward Shingū and Kii-Katsuura) and the Sangū Line (toward Ise-shi and Toba). These JR services, operated with JR Central rolling stock over Ise Railway track, remain the line's principal source of revenue, while Ise Railway runs the local trains with its own railcars.

Stations on this line

10 stations tracked on the map, listed alphabetically. Select any to read its page.

Timeline
  • 196116 June: the route is added to the national railway construction plan.
  • 1964The construction of the line is entrusted to the Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation as a trunk-grade project.
  • 19654 November: construction of the line begins.
  • 19731 September: the Ise Line opens as a Japanese National Railways line, 26.0 km from Minami-Yokkaichi to Tsu, with six new stations (Suzuka, Tamagaki, Inō, Nakaseko, Kawage, Higashi-Ichishida).
  • 19731 October: the limited express Kuroshio (1 round trip) and the express Kishū (3 round trips) are rerouted off the Kameyama route to run via the new Ise Line.
  • 19782 October: the Kuroshio service to and from Nagoya is discontinued and the limited express Nanki is introduced over the line.
  • 198217 May: the express Kishū is returned to the Kameyama route.
  • 198422 June: the Ise Line is designated a second-phase Specified Local Line, marking it for third-sector conversion or closure.
  • 19861 October: the third-sector company Ise Railway is established to take over the line.
  • 198727 March: the JNR Ise Line is abolished and reopens under Ise Railway as a 22.3 km line from Kawarada to Tsu; Ise-Ueno Station opens and Inō Station is renamed Suzuka Circuit Inō.
  • 199010 March: the rapid service Mie begins operating over the line between Nagoya and the Kisei and Sangū lines.
  • 199116 March: Tokuda Station opens and the line's maximum speed is raised to 110 km/h.
  • 1993Double-tracking between Kawarada and Nakaseko is completed: Kawarada–Tamagaki by 7 March and Tamagaki–Nakaseko by 4 July.
  • 1996From the 1996 fiscal year the Ise Railway turns a profit for the first time, helped by growing numbers of commuters and students using its stations.

Sources

Last updated 16 October 2026.

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