Sakai Line

The line is one of the oldest railways in the San'in area. It opened on 1 November 1902, together with the San'in Main Line section beyond Yonago; its original stations were Sakai, Ōshinozu, Gotō and Yonago. Distances were at first quoted in the old imperial units of miles and chains, the Sakai–Yonago distance being given as 10 miles 63 chains; eleven days later, on 12 November 1902, the units were simplified to miles alone.

The railway's role shifted in 1908. When the Yonago–Yasugi section opened on 5 April that year, the Yonago–Sakai portion was reclassified as a branch. The following year, on 12 October 1909, the national railway line-naming scheme was established and the branch was formally christened the Sakai Line. A series of changes followed over the next two decades: Sakai Station was relocated in December 1914, steam railcar service began in 1915, Yumigahama Station opened in 1917, and on 1 July 1919 the terminus, Sakai Station, was renamed Sakaiminato Station. On 1 April 1930 the line's distances were converted from miles to kilometres, fixing the route length at 17.9 km, and internal-combustion railcar operation began in 1933.

The line built up its complement of intermediate stations over the mid-twentieth century. Amariko Station opened in 1932, Wadahama in 1951, and a cluster of four — Bakurōmachi, Kawasaki-guchi, Nakahama and Agarimichi — opened together on 1 July 1952. In January 1935 a great fire swept the town of Sakai, and a relief train was run to help evacuate residents.

The modern operating era brought electrification of only a fragment of the route. On 21 June 1982 the Yonago–Gotō section was electrified at 1,500 V DC, but solely to allow rolling stock to enter and leave the Gotō depot; the rest of the line remained, and remains, non-electrified. A temporary boat-landing halt at Sakaiminato opened in 1984 to connect with Oki Islands shipping but closed in 1986, and all freight operations on the line ceased on 1 November 1986. With the dissolution and privatisation of Japanese National Railways, operation of the Sakai Line passed to JR West on 1 April 1987, and that November JR West opened five new stations of its own — Fujimi-chō, Sanbon-matsuguchi, Misaki-guchi, Takamatsu-chō and Babasaki-chō.

Sakaiminato is the hometown of Mizuki Shigeru, creator of the yōkai manga "GeGeGe no Kitarō", and after the Mizuki Shigeru Road was developed in the city, JR West began running a decorated "Kitarō Train" on 19 September 1993; one-man operation was introduced on all but some services that same year. Further themed trains followed in waves, and on 17 March 2005 each of the line's stations was given the nickname of a yōkai character from the series. Over the years a fleet of character trains — Kitarō, Nezumi-Otoko (Rat Man), Neko-Musume (Cat Girl), Medama-Oyaji (Eyeball Father) and others — has been repainted through multiple generations.

The line has continued to modernise in recent decades. In 2008 the track was realigned for the extension of the runway at Yonago Airport, and Ōshinozu Station was relocated and renamed Yonago Airport Station. A new electronic block-control system entered use in 2015, and on 16 March 2019 the line became usable with ICOCA IC cards through JR West's first on-board card readers. From the March 2022 timetable revision, three- and four-car trains began running in one-man (driver-only) operation. The line is also used as an access route to places such as the Oki Islands.

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

• Agarimichi上道
• Amariko余子
• Babasakicho馬場崎町
• Bakuromachi博労町
• Fujimicho (Tottori)富士見町
• Goto後藤
• Kawasakiguchi河崎口
• Nakahama中浜
• Oshinozucho大篠津町
• Sakaiminato境港
• Sambommatsuguchi三本松口
• Takamatsucho高松町
• Wadahama和田浜
• Yonago米子
• Yonago Airport米子空港
• Yumigahama弓ヶ浜

• 19021 November: the Sakai–Yonago section opens together with the San'in Main Line section beyond Yonago, with Sakai, Ōshinozu, Gotō and Yonago stations (Sakai–Yonago given as 10 miles 63 chains).
• 19085 April: with the opening of the Yonago–Yasugi section, the Yonago–Sakai portion becomes a branch line.
• 190912 October: the national railway line-naming scheme is established and the branch becomes the Sakai Line.
• 19191 July: the terminus, Sakai Station, is renamed Sakaiminato Station.
• 19301 April: line distances are converted from miles to kilometres, fixing the length at 17.9 km.
• 193317 June: internal-combustion railcar operation begins (steam railcar service had started in 1915).
• 193512 January: a great fire breaks out in the town of Sakai; a relief train is run to evacuate residents.
• 19521 July: Bakurōmachi, Kawasaki-guchi, Nakahama and Agarimichi stations open (Wadahama had opened in 1951).
• 198221 June: the Yonago–Gotō section is electrified at 1,500 V DC, solely for trains entering and leaving the Gotō depot.
• 19861 November: all freight operations on the line cease (the temporary boat-landing halt for Oki shipping, opened 1984, had closed that September).
• 19871 April: following the dissolution and privatisation of Japanese National Railways, JR West takes over the line; on 1 November it opens five new stations of its own: Fujimi-chō, Sanbon-matsuguchi, Misaki-guchi, Takamatsu-chō and Babasaki-chō.
• 199319 September: the decorated 'Kitarō Train' enters service after the Mizuki Shigeru Road is developed in Sakaiminato; one-man operation begins on all but some trains that November.
• 200517 March: each station is given the nickname of a yōkai character from 'GeGeGe no Kitarō'.
• 200815 June: for the extension of the airport runway, the line is realigned; the former Ōshinozu Station becomes Yonago Airport Station and Misaki-guchi is renamed Ōshinozu-chō.
• 201916 March: the line becomes usable with ICOCA IC cards via JR West's first on-board card readers.
• 202212 March: from the timetable revision, three- and four-car trains begin one-man (driver-only) operation.