Hakone Tozan Line 箱根登山鉄道線

The Hakone Tozan Line is one of the oldest and steepest mountain railways in Japan. The route is located in the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park and it is very popular way for tourists to get around the Hakone area. It extends from Odawara (26m) to Gora (553m) with a total lenght of 15 kilometers. Maximum gradient: 8%. The entire line is single-tracked, there are passing loops at all stations.


Train operations are divided in two parts. The lower section between Odawara and Hakone-Yumoto is technically an extension of the Odakyu Odawara Line and has the narrow gauge of 1067mm. It is electrified with 1500 V DC. Many limited express services from Shinjuku in Tokyo have through operations to Hakone-Yumoto. Local trains usually operate in isolation with a few services continuing to Shin-Matsuda. Local trains operate about every 15 minutes, limited express trains run every 15 or 30 minutes.

The upper section to Gora has the normal gauge of 1435mm.
All trains are local and operate about every 13 minutes. (remember: all single-tracked!)
It is electrified with 750 V DC. A special 'feature' are the three switch-backs which were built to avoid longer tunnels or higher gradients - zig-zag configurations at which the trains need to reverse.
The small section between Iriuda and Hakone-Yumoto is dual-tracked so that the narrow gauge trains can reach their depot in Iriuda.

The Hakone Tozan Railway has a partnership with the 'Rhätische Bahn', a mountain railway in Suisse Alps. Some trains are nicknamed 'Bernina' or 'St. Moritz'.



Rolling stock:

Odawara - Hakone-Yumoto:
Odakyu 1000 series (Local)
Odakyu 7000 series (Ltd Exp)
Odakyu 30000 series (Ltd Exp)
Odakyu 50000 series (Ltd Exp)
Odakyu 60000 series (Ltd Exp)

Hakone-Yumoto - Gora:
2 'MoHa' trains (3 cars)
1000 series trains (2&3 car formations)
2000 series trains (2&3 car formations)
3000 series trains (from November 2014)

Thank you for watching! :)