Hakubi Line - Hakubisen

The name of the track of West Japan Railway Company. The 138.4 km section runs from Kurashiki (Okayama Prefecture) to Hoki Daisen (Tottori Prefecture). Only the 34.0 km section between Kurashiki and Bitchu Takahashi and the 4.5 km section between Ikura and Ishiga are double tracked and fully DC electrified. One of the railways that crosses the Chugoku Mountains and connects the Sanyo and Sanin regions. On the Sanyo side, it runs up the Takahashi River basin, passes under the watershed at Tanida Pass, and connects to the Hino River basin on the Sanin side. Cities along the line include Soja, Takahashi, and Niimi. Construction was carried out one after the other on the Hakubi North Line and the South Line, which opened between 1919 and 1928 (Taisho 8-Showa 3), and when the line was completed in 1928, the two lines were combined to form the Hakubi Line. With the opening of the Sanyo Shinkansen (1972), the Hakubi Line formed the route with the shortest travel time linking the Keihanshin area with the central Sanin region (Yonago, Matsue, Izumo Plain, etc.), and became an important line among the Yin-Yo connecting lines. As a result, train speeds and services were improved, and facilities were improved, with electrification completed in 1982 (Showa 57), and double tracking was also implemented. Most trains enter the Sanyo Main Line and the Sanin Main Line, and run directly to Okayama and west of Yonago, respectively. In 1987, following the privatization of the Japanese National Railways, the line became part of West Japan Railway Company. Between Kiyone and Soja, Ibara Railway operates as a Class 2 railway operator, leasing facilities from West Japan Railway Company.

[Eiichi Aoki and Ryo Aoki]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

西日本旅客鉄道の線路名称。倉敷(くらしき)（岡山県）―伯耆大山(ほうきだいせん)（鳥取県）間138.4キロメートル。倉敷―備中高梁(びっちゅうたかはし)間34.0キロメートルと、井倉―石蟹(いしが)間4.5キロメートルのみ複線、全線直流電化。中国山地を縦断して山陽・山陰地方を連絡する鉄道の一つ。山陽側は高梁川流域をさかのぼり、分水嶺(れい)の谷田(たにだ)峠の下を貫いて山陰側の日野川流域に通じている。沿線に総社(そうじゃ)、高梁、新見(にいみ)などの都市がある。伯備北線、南線として両端から逐次工事を進め、1919～1928年（大正8～昭和3）開業して、1928年の全通とともに両線をあわせて伯備線とした。山陽新幹線の開業（1972）によって、伯備線は京阪神地域と山陰地方中部（米子(よなご)、松江、出雲(いずも)平野など）を結ぶもっとも所要時間の短いルートを形成し、陰陽連絡線のなかで重要な線となった。このため、列車のスピードとサービスの向上、設備の改良が進められて、1982年（昭和57）電化が完成、複線化も進んだ。大部分の列車は山陽本線、山陰本線に乗り入れて、それぞれ岡山、米子以西に直通する。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。清音(きよね)―総社間は、井原鉄道が第2種鉄道事業者として西日本旅客鉄道の施設を借りて運営している。

［青木栄一・青木　亮］

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