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Seishin Extension Line

西神延伸線

The Seishin Extension Line (西神延伸線, Seishin-enshin-sen) is a 9.4-kilometre rapid-transit railway in the western suburbs of Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, operated by the Kobe Municipal Transportation Bureau as part of the Kobe Municipal Subway.

It runs from Myōdani Station to Seishin-Chūō Station and, as its name indicates, is a westward extension of the Seishin Line; together with the Yamate Line and the Seishin Line it makes up the through-running route marketed as the Seishin-Yamate Line. The line is built to 1,435 mm standard gauge and electrified at 1,500 V DC using overhead catenary, and unlike the underground downtown section it runs mostly at the surface, passing through only five tunnels as it crosses the hills of western Kobe. Its purpose was to serve Seishin New Town.

KobeNishiSumaTarumi2 km
Route of the Seishin Extension Line · Hyogo · Boundaries: MLIT / GSI / Japan Post

History

The extension grew directly out of the original Seishin Line. The first stretch of Kobe's subway, between Shin-Nagata and Myōdani, had opened on 13 March 1977. The municipal government later planned a continuation beyond Myōdani to reach Seishin New Town, and this continuation became the Seishin Extension Line.

Authorisation for the extension came in the early 1980s. On 17 February 1982 the Ministry of Transport granted the railway-business licence for the Myōdani–Seishin-Chūō section, and construction work on the segment began on 30 August 1982.

The Seishin Extension Line opened in two stages. The first stage, from Myōdani to Gakuentoshi, was brought into service on 18 June 1985 — the same day that the Yamate Line's final link, between Shin-Kobe and Ōkurayama, was completed.

The second and final stage, from Gakuentoshi onward to Seishin-Chūō, opened on 18 March 1987, completing the extension. With this opening the through route from Shin-Kobe in central Kobe out to Seishin-Chūō was finished, and Seishin-Chūō became the western terminus of the entire Seishin-Yamate corridor.

On 20 March 1993 a new intermediate station, Seishin-Minami, was opened on the extension between Ikawadani and Seishin-Chūō. By this period trains were also running through beyond the central end of the line: on 2 April 1988 the Hokushin Express Electric Railway Hokushin Line (now the Kobe Municipal Subway Hokushin Line) had opened and begun reciprocal through services at Shin-Kobe, extending journeys north toward Tanigami.

The line was damaged in the Great Hanshin earthquake of 17 January 1995. Operations were suspended, then restored in stages: service over the western section, including the Seishin Extension Line, resumed comparatively quickly, with the Itayado–Seishin-Chūō portion reopening on 18 January 1995 and double-track operation between Myōdani and Gakuentoshi restored on 25 January, while full restoration of the whole Seishin-Yamate route took several more months.

The Seishin Extension Line is now operated as an integral part of the Seishin-Yamate Line; from March 2000 the Kobe Municipal Subway adopted "Seishin-Yamate Line" as the unified guidance name for the combined route.

Stations on this line

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

Timeline
  • 198217 February: the Ministry of Transport grants the railway-business licence for the Myōdani–Seishin-Chūō (Seishin Extension Line) section.
  • 198230 August: construction of the Myōdani–Seishin-Chūō section begins.
  • 198518 June: the first stage, Myōdani–Gakuentoshi, opens (the same day the Yamate Line's Shin-Kobe–Ōkurayama link is completed).
  • 198718 March: the final stage, Gakuentoshi–Seishin-Chūō, opens, completing the Seishin Extension Line.
  • 19882 April: the Hokushin Express Electric Railway Hokushin Line opens and reciprocal through services begin at Shin-Kobe.
  • 199320 March: Seishin-Minami Station opens on the extension between Ikawadani and Seishin-Chūō.
  • 19939 July: rapid (kaisoku) service is introduced on the Seishin-Yamate route.
  • 199517 January: the line is damaged in the Great Hanshin earthquake (Southern Hyogo Prefecture earthquake).
  • 199518 January: service over the Itayado–Seishin-Chūō section, covering the Seishin Extension Line, resumes from 15:33.
  • 199525 January: double-track operation is restored between Myōdani and Gakuentoshi.
  • 20001 March: the combined route's guidance name is changed to "Seishin-Yamate Line".
  • 201916 February: the 6000-series enters service on the route.
  • 20265 January: one-man (driver-only) operation begins on the route.

Sources

Last updated 16 October 2026.

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