Sanin Main Line

The name of the track operated by West Japan Railway Company, which runs along the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan in the Kinki and Chugoku regions. It is 673.8 km long between Kyoto and Hatabu, and 2.2 km long between Nagato and Senzaki. It runs through the coastal region of the San'in region, and along the line are cities such as Ayabe, Fukuchiyama, Toyooka, Tottori, Kurayoshi, Yonago, Yasugi, Matsue, Izumo, Oda, Gotsu, Hamada, Masuda, Hagi, and Nagato, as well as tourist destinations in the San'in Kaigan National Park, Daisen-Oki National Park, and Kita-Nagato Kaigan Quasi-National Park. In the past, it was considered to be the main railway line running through the San'in region, but since the 1970s, the main transportation linking the San'in region and the Kinki region has mainly been a combination of the Shinkansen and the Inyo Crossing Railway or buses, and coupled with the development of air transportation, the San'in Main Line has come to be seen as a railway line consisting of a series of local railways centered on many regional cities. The DC electrified sections are limited to a total of 229.2 km between Kyoto and Kinosaki Onsen, and Hoki Daisen and Nishiizumo, and the double-track sections are limited to Kyoto and Sonobe, Ayabe and Fukuchiyama, Hoki Daisen and Yasugi, Higashimatsue and Matsue, and Tamatsukuri Onsen and Kimachi (2011). Its construction was carried out separately for each section, with the Kyoto Railway (opened 1897-1899, nationalized in 1907) opening the Kyoto-Sonobe section as a private railway, the Hankaku Railway (opened 1904, nationalized in 1907) opening the Ayabe-Fukuchiyama section as a private railway, and the Maizuru Line, a government-run line, opening between Sonobe and Ayabe in 1910 (Meiji 43). Construction of the section west of Fukuchiyama began in 1902 from Sakai (now Sakaiminato) as the Inyo Link Line, and the line was gradually extended under the names of the San'in East Line and West Line, until in 1912, when the section between Kyoto and Izumo Imaichi (now Izumo City) was completed, it became the San'in Main Line. West of Izumo city, the line opened between 1913 and 1933 (Taisho 2-Showa 8) under names such as Hamada Line, Mine Line, and Kogushi Line, and the Hatabu-Kogushi section was acquired from Choshu Railway (opened in 1914, nationalized in 1925). In 1987, following the privatization of the Japanese National Railways, it became part of West Japan Railway Company.

[Eiichi Aoki and Ryo Aoki]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

近畿・中国地方の日本海沿岸を走る西日本旅客鉄道の線路名称。京都―幡生(はたぶ)間673.8キロメートル、長門(ながと)市―仙崎(せんざき)間2.2キロメートル。山陰地方海岸地域を縦断し、沿線には綾部(あやベ)、福知山、豊岡(とよおか)、鳥取、倉吉(くらよし)、米子(よなご)、安来(やすぎ)、松江、出雲(いずも)、大田(おおだ)、江津(ごうつ)、浜田、益田(ますだ)、萩(はぎ)、長門などの都市、山陰海岸国立公園、大山隠岐(だいせんおき)国立公園、北長門海岸国定公園などに属する観光地がある。かつては山陰地方の縦貫幹線鉄道と考えられたが、1970年代以降には、山陰地方と近畿地方を結ぶ幹線交通は、新幹線と陰陽横断鉄道またはバスの組合せが主力となり、航空交通の整備とも相まって、山陰本線は多くの地方都市を中心としたローカル鉄道が連続した形態の鉄道とみなされるようになった。直流電化区間は、京都―城崎(きのさき)温泉、伯耆(ほうき)大山―西出雲間の計229.2キロメートルにとどまり、複線区間は京都―園部、綾部―福知山、伯耆大山―安来(やすぎ)、東松江―松江、玉造温泉(たまつくりおんせん)―来待(きまち)間に限られる（2011）。その建設は区間ごとに別個に進められ、京都―園部間は京都鉄道（1897～1899年開業、1907年国有化）、綾部―福知山間は阪鶴(はんかく)鉄道（1904年開業、1907年国有化）と、私鉄として開業し、園部―綾部間は官鉄舞鶴(まいづる)線として1910年（明治43）それぞれ開業した。福知山以西の区間は陰陽連絡線として、1902年、境(さかい)（現、境港(さかいみなと)）から着工したのに始まり、山陰東線・西線の名称で路線を逐次延長、1912年、京都―出雲今市(いまいち)（現、出雲市）間の全通とともに山陰本線となった。出雲市以西では、浜田線、美祢(みね)線、小串(こぐし)線などの名称で、1913～1933年（大正2～昭和8）に開業、幡生―小串間は長州鉄道（1914年開業、1925年国有化）を買収したものであった。1987年、日本国有鉄道の分割民営化に伴い、西日本旅客鉄道に所属。

［青木栄一・青木　亮］

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