Mizushima Main Line

The line began life as a wartime industrial railway. On 17 September 1942 a licence was granted for a dedicated railway, and on 30 June 1943 it opened as a private works line of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mizushima Aircraft Factory, running between Kurashiki and the aircraft plant. After the war the railway passed in 1947 to the Mizushima Industrial City Development company, and the route was reborn for public use: on 20 August 1948 it opened as a local railway under the Local Railway Law, running from today's Kurashiki-shi Station to Mizushima and on to Mizushima-kō (Mizushima Port).

In the 1950s the line came under municipal control. On 1 April 1952 it was transferred to the city of Kurashiki and operated thereafter by the Kurashiki City Transportation Bureau as a municipal railway. The railway then grew: the section from Mizushima-kō to Nishi-futō (West Pier) opened on 1 July 1962, and the section from Mizushima to Kawatetsu-mae on 20 August 1965.

On 1 April 1970 the line was transferred from the Kurashiki City Transportation Bureau to the Mizushima Rinkai Railway. Under its new owner the line was modernised step by step: centralised traffic control was introduced between Kurashiki-shi and Mizushima on 1 June 1971, and on 17 September 1972 passenger service was extended from Mizushima to a new terminus at Mitsubishi-jikō-mae, beside the Mitsubishi Motors plant, fixing the present passenger route between Kurashiki-shi and Mitsubishi-jikō-mae.

On 1 April 1983 the Kurashiki Freight Terminal opened between Mitsubishi-jikō-mae and Kawatetsu-mae, and on the same day the sections from the new terminal to Kawatetsu-mae and from Mizushima via Mizushima-kō to Nishi-futō were closed. The railway carries goods from the factories of the Mizushima coastal industrial district.

Through the 1980s and 1990s the passenger railway was steadily upgraded and the line settled into its present form. Kurashiki-shi Station was relocated in front of Japanese National Railways' Kurashiki Station on 7 April 1981; new intermediate stations were added through the decade; and on 7 September 1992 the section between Urata and Mitsubishi-jikō-mae was elevated, opening Tokiwa Station. Automatic train stop was installed in 1995, and one-man operation began on 16 March 1996, extending in 2002 to all trains on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Station numbering was introduced in 2019.

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

• Fukui (Okayama · Mizushima Rinkai Railway)福井
• Kurashikishi倉敷市
• Kyujo-mae (Okayama)球場前
• Mitsubishijiko-mae三菱自工前
• Mizushima水島
• Nishitomii西富井
• Sakae (Okayama)栄
• Tokiwa (Okayama)常盤
• Urada浦田
• Yayoi弥生

• 194217 September: a licence is granted for a dedicated (works) railway.
• 194330 June: the line opens as a private works railway of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mizushima Aircraft Factory, between Kurashiki and the aircraft plant.
• 1947The railway is transferred from the former aircraft factory to the Mizushima Industrial City Development company.
• 194820 August: opens as a local railway under the Local Railway Law, from today's Kurashiki-shi Station via Mizushima to Mizushima-kō (Mizushima Port).
• 19521 April: the line is transferred to the city of Kurashiki and run by the Kurashiki City Transportation Bureau as a municipal railway.
• 19621 July: the section from Mizushima-kō to Nishi-futō (West Pier) opens.
• 196520 August: the section from Mizushima to Kawatetsu-mae opens.
• 19701 April: the line is transferred from the Kurashiki City Transportation Bureau to the Mizushima Rinkai Railway.
• 19711 June: centralised traffic control (CTC) is introduced between Kurashiki-shi and Mizushima.
• 197217 September: passenger service is extended from Mizushima to Mitsubishi-jikō-mae, which opens as the new passenger terminus.
• 19817 April: Kurashiki-shi Station is relocated in front of Japanese National Railways' Kurashiki Station.
• 19831 April: the Kurashiki Freight Terminal opens between Mitsubishi-jikō-mae and Kawatetsu-mae; the sections from the terminal to Kawatetsu-mae and from Mizushima via Mizushima-kō to Nishi-futō close.
• 19927 September: the Urata–Mitsubishi-jikō-mae section is elevated and Tokiwa Station opens.
• 199616 March: one-man operation begins; in 2002 it is extended to all trains on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.