Odakyu Electric Railway

The Odakyu Electric Railway Company, Ltd. (小田急電鉄株式会社, Odakyū Dentetsu kabushiki gaisha), commonly known as Odakyū or Odawara Kyuko, is a major railway company based in Tokyo, Japan, best known for its Romancecar series of limited express trains from Tokyo to Odawara, Enoshima, Tama New Town, and Hakone.

Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Ltd.

Ebina Headquarters, Ebina, Kanagawa
Native name	小田急電鉄株式会社
Romanized name	Odakyū Dentetsu kabushiki gaisha
Company type	Public (kabushiki gaisha)
Traded as	TYO: 9007 Nikkei 225 component
Industry	Public transport
Predecessor	Odawara Express Railway Co., Ltd. 小田原急行鉄道株式会社
Founded	Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan (1 June 1948 (1948-06-01))
Headquarters	2-2 Megumi-cho, Ebina, Kanagawa (Ebina Headquarters) 1-8-3 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku, Tokyo (Shinjuku Headquarters)
Key people	Koji Hoshino [jp], (President & CEO)
Revenue	¥166.445 billion (FY2016)
Net income	¥39.824 billion (FY2016)
Owner	Dai-ichi Life (5.55%) Yamanashi Chuo Bank (0.50%) Tokyu Corporation (0.26%) Keikyu (0.15%) JR East (0.12%) Keio Corporation (0.09%) Seibu Holdings (0.05%)
Number of employees	3,593 (as of 2016/8/1)
Website	www.odakyu.jp

The Odakyu Electric Railway Company forms the core of the Odakyu Group, which comprises 101 companies (as of July 14, 2017) and includes the Enoshima Electric Railway, Hakone Tozan Railway, Odakyu Bus [ja], Odakyu Department Store [ja], and Hyatt Regency Tokyo [ja] hotel. It is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the Nikkei 225.

History

Pre-WWII

 

Former Odakyu Head Office Building near Minami-Shinjuku station

The 83 km (52 mi) line from Shinjuku to Odawara opened for service on 1 April 1927. Unlike the Odawara line, rarely were pre-World War II Japanese private railways constructed with double-track and fully electrified from the first day of operation. Two years later, on 1 April 1929, the Enoshima Line was added.

The original full name of the railroad was Odawara Express Railway Company, Ltd. (小田原急行鉄道株式会社, Odawara Kyūkō Tetsudō kabushiki gaisha),^[1] but this was often shortened to Odawara Kyūkō (小田原急行, "Odawara Express"). The abbreviation Odakyu was made popular by the title song of the 1929 movie Tōkyō kōshinkyoku and eventually became the official name of the railroad on March 1, 1941.^{[2][page needed]}

On 1 May 1942, Odakyu merged with the Tokyo-Yokohama Electric Railway company (now Tokyu Corporation), which controlled all private railway services west and south of Tokyo by the end of World War II.

Post-WWII

 

Odakyu 5000 series EMU near Mukōgaoka-Yūen Station

The company regained its independence on June 1, 1948, and it obtained a large amount of Hakone Tozan Railway stocks, instead of separating Keio Inokashira Line for Keio Corporation. Odakyu restarted Non-stop Limited Express service between Shinjuku and Odawara in 1948. In 1950, Odakyu trains ran through to Hakone-Yumoto on Hakone Tozan Line. Odakyu uses 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow gauge tracks, but the Hakone Tozan Railway is 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge, so one track of the section from Odawara to Hakone-Yumoto (6.1 km (3.8 mi)) was changed to a dual gauge system. Odakyu operated the first Romancecar (1710 series) limited express in 1951.

After the 1950s, due to rapid Japanese economic growth, Odakyu was faced with an explosive increase of population along with its lines. Commuter passengers had to use very crowded trains every morning, and complained strongly with the delay of improvements from the railway company. Odakyu began construction on the - "Shinjuku Station Great Improvement Project" setting 5 lines and 10 platforms long enough for 10 standard commuter cars with service on the Chiyoda Line, among others. Plans for a four-track system in 1964 were prevented by residents of Setagaya Ward in Tokyo, as such the system remains uncompleted. The Setagaya Residents' opposition set the stage for a long-term and remarkable case in the courts and legislature. Odakyu could not take main part of transport from Tama New Town Area, though Odakyu started the operation of Tama Line in 1974. To serve its Mukōgaoka-Yūen Amusement Park, Odakyu operated the Mukōgaoka-Yūen Monorail Line between Mukōgaoka-Yūen and Mukōgaoka-Yūen-Seimon (1.1 km (0.68 mi), 2 stations) beginning in 1966 using a Lockheed Corporation style monorail system; the system was closed in 2001 when the amusement park was shut down.

Post-millennium

 

An Odakyu 50000 series VSE Romancecar near Shin-Yurigaoka station

Since 2000, Odakyū has been adding track in both directions from Izumi-Tamagawa Station, on Tama River, the border station of Tokyo, to just outside Setagaya-Daita Station for expanding the availability of express trains, especially for morning commuter service. The lines between Setagaya-Daita and Higashi-Kitazawa Station are still under construction, however. Odakyu announced that the bottle-neck will be resolved by 2013.

All of its lines are double- or quadruple-tracked within Tokyo Metropolis as of March 2018, a project first decided in December 1964 but due to NIMBY land acquisition difficulties, complex and expensive workarounds were constructed and finished, taking a half century. The main or Odawara Line acts as a bypass route for the Tōkaidō Main Line from Tokyo to western Kanagawa. The Romancecar 3000 series "SE" was tested at speeds of up to 145 km/h (90 mph) in 1957, achieving a world record for narrow gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) lines at the time. These tests also provided important data on high-speed electric multiple units (EMU), which Japanese National Railways (JNR) used for its limited express EMUs, 151 series, and 0 Series Shinkansen introduced in the early 1960s.

Odakyu celebrated its 80th anniversary in April 2007. The 50th anniversary of the Romancecar was celebrated in September 2007.

Station numbers were introduced to all Odakyū Line stations in 2014, with stations numbered using the prefix "OH".^[3][4]

Odakyu are the current shirt sponsors of football club Machida Zelvia.

On 6 August 2021, a mass stabbing incident occurred on one of its commuter services when a man stabbed nine passengers, seriously injuring a woman before trying to ignite a fire on the compartment. The man escaped and was arrested hours later.^[5]

Lines

Odakyu owns three railway lines directly, and another three lines via subsidiaries. It also operates trains onto the Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line, JR East Jōban Line, and JR Central Gotemba Line.

Line	Section	Length (km)	Stations	Date opened
Odawara Line	Shinjuku - Odawara	82.5	47	April 1, 1927
Enoshima Line	Sagami-Ōno - Katase-Enoshima	27.4	17	April 1, 1929
Tama Line	Shin-Yurigaoka - Karakida	10.6	8	June 1, 1974 (in part) March 27, 1990 (full)
Total	3 lines	120.5	70

• Not including the connecting branch between Odawara Line and JR Central Gotemba Line near Shin-Matsuda Station.
• Many Odakyu Tama Line trains (and selected Odawara Line trains from Hon-Atsugi) continue on to the Chiyoda and Jōban lines for Ayase and - Toride stations. This service began in 1978 between Hon-Atsugi and Abiko stations.
• Some Odakyū trains continue on the Odakyu-owned Hakone Tozan Line to Hakone-Yumoto.
• Limited express Mt. Fuji trains travel from Shinjuku through on the JR Central Gotemba Line to Gotemba Station eight times a day.

Train classification

(As of March 17, 2018 timetable revision)

Color	Classification	Japanese	Runs between	Line(s)
	Limited Express	特急	Shinjuku, Kita-Senju, and Shin-Kiba to Hakone-Yumoto, Katase-Enoshima, Karakida or Numazu	Odakyū Odawara, Enoshima, Tama; Hakone Tozan; JR Central Gotemba; and Tokyo Metro Chiyoda and Yūrakuchō lines
	Rapid Express	快速急行	Shinjuku to Odawara or Fujisawa (one service on weekdays to Katase-Enoshima)	Odakyū Odawara and Enoshima lines
	Express	急行	Shinjuku to Odawara, Katase-Enoshima or Karakida	Odakyū Odawara, Enoshima, and Tama lines
	Commuter Express	通勤急行	All services operate in the weekday morning rush hour for Shinjuku from Karakida on the Odakyu Tama Line	Odakyū Odawara, Tama Lines
	Commuter Semi Express	通勤準急	All Services operate in the weekday morning rush hour for Yoyogi-Uehara through to the Chiyoda Line from Hon-Atsugi	Odakyu Odawara Line, Chiyoda Line, Joban Line
	Semi Express	準急	All services operate between Yoyogi-Uehara and Isehara during the offpeak and evening rush hour	Odakyū Odawara Line, Chiyoda Line, Joban Line
	Local	各駅停車	In all sections, includes to/from Hakone-Yumoto on Hakone Tozan Line (occasionally between Odawara and Shin-Matsuda)	Odakyū Odawara, Enoshima, Tama; and Hakone Tozan lines

Romancecar limited express services require a supplementary surcharge.

 

Odakyu-linemap

Limited express service

Shinjuku Station routes

Commuter service is shown on each line's page.

Station	Japanese	Distance (km)	Super Hakone [ja]	Hakone [ja]	Sagami [ja]	Mt. Fuji	Enoshima	Home Way	Lines
Shinjuku	新宿	-	●	●	●	●	●	●	Odakyū Odawara Line
Noborito	登戸	15.8	｜	■	■	｜	｜	｜
Shin-Yurigaoka	新百合ヶ丘	21.5	｜	■	■	｜	●	■
Machida	町田	30.8	｜	●	●	●	｜	■
Sagami-Ōno	相模大野	32.3	｜	■	■	｜	●	■
Ebina	海老名	45.4	｜	■	●	●	∥	●
Hadano	秦野	61.7	｜	■	■	｜	∥	●
Shin-Matsuda	新松田	71.8	｜	■	■	∥	∥	｜
Odawara	小田原	82.5	●	●	●	∥	∥	●
Hakone-Yumoto	箱根湯本	88.6	●	●		∥	∥	●	Hakone Tozan Line
Yamato	大和	39.9				∥	●	●	Odakyū Enoshima Line
Fujisawa	藤沢	55.4				∥	●	●
Katase-Enoshima	片瀬江ノ島	59.9				∥	●	●
Odakyū-Nagayama	小田急永山	28.3				∥		●	Odakyū Tama Line
Odakyū-Tama-Center	小田急多摩センター	30.6				∥		●
Karakida	唐木田	32.1				∥		●
Matsuda	松田	71.8				●			JR Central Gotemba Line
Suruga-Oyama	駿河小山	86.2				■
Gotemba	御殿場	97.1				●

• Mt. Fuji trains run on the connecting branch line just before Shin-Matsuda from Shinjuku and stops at Matsuda on the Gotemba Line. Matsuda and Shin-Matsuda are treated as the same station.
• Home Way trains run from Shinjuku every evening after 18:00. There is no service to Shinjuku.

Tokyo Metro routes

Commuter services are shown on each line's page.

Station	Japanese	Distance (km)	Metro Homeway	Metro Hakone	Metro Sagami	Bay Resort	Lines
Shin-Kiba	新木場					●	Tokyo Metro Yūrakuchō Line
Toyosu	豊洲					●
Kita-Senju	北千住	0.0	●	●	●	∥	Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line
Ōtemachi	大手町	9.9	●	●	●	∥
Kasumigaseki	霞ヶ関	12.1	●	●	●	●
Omotesandō	表参道	16.2	●	●	●	●
Yoyogi-Uehara	代々木上原	19.3	*	*	*	*
							Odakyū Odawara Line
Seijōgakuen-Mae	成城学園前	27.4	■	｜	■	●
Shin-Yurigaoka	新百合ヶ丘	37.3	■	｜	■	●
Machida	町田	46.6	●	●	●
Hon-Atsugi	本厚木	61.2	｜	●	●
Odawara	小田原	98.3	∥	●
							Hakone Tozan Line
Hakone-Yumoto	箱根湯本	104.4	∥	●
Odakyū-Nagayama	小田急永山	44.1	●				Odakyū Tama Line
Odakyū-Tama-Center	小田急多摩センター	46.4	●
Karakida	唐木田	47.9	●

• At Yoyogi-Uehara, all trains pause, but there is no service for passengers; Odakyū and Tokyo Metro change their operating staff at the station.
• On weekday mornings, Metro Sagami trains run once from Hon-Atsugi to Kita-Senju.
• On weekday evenings, Metro Homeway trains run twice from Hon-Atsugi to Kita-Senju and once from Ōtemachi to Hon-Atsugi.
• On weekends and holidays, Metro Hakone trains run between Kita-Senju and Hakone-Yumoto four times; Metro Sagami (once in the morning) and Metro Homeway (once in the evening) trains also run between Kita-Senju and Hon-Atsugi.
• Once or twice per month, Metro Sagami and Metro Homeway become Bay Resort trains, traveling between Shin-Kiba and Hon-Atsugi. They travel to/from the Tokyo Metro Yūrakuchō and Chiyoda lines.

Legend

Symbol	Definition
●	all trains stop
■	some trains stop
｜	all trains pass
∥	trains do not travel through this section

Rolling stock

Romancecar sets

• 30000 series "EXE/EXEalpha" (introduced 1996)
• 60000 series "MSE" (introduced 2008)
• 70000 series "GSE" (introduced 2018)

Former

• 3000 series "SE" (1957–1991)
• 3100 series "NSE" (1963–2000)
• 7000 series "LSE" (1980–2018)
• 10000 series "HiSE" (1987–2012)
• 20000 series "RSE" (1991–2012)
• 50000 series "VSE" (2005–2022)

•  
  7000 series "LSE"
•  
  30000 series "EXEalpha"
•  
  50000 series "VSE"
•  
  60000 series "MSE
•  
  70000 series "GSE"

Commuter sets

Current

• 1000 series (introduced 1988)
• 2000 series (introduced 1995)
• 3000 series (introduced 2002)
• 4000 series (introduced 2007)
• 5000 series (introduced 2020)
• 8000 series (introduced 1983)

Former

• 5000 series (1969–2012)
• 9000 series (1972–2006)

•  
  8000 series
•  
  9000 series
•  
  1000 series
•  
  2000 series
•  
  3000 series
•  
  4000 series
•  
  5000 series

Odakyu Electric Railway in media

The Odakyu Railway has been included in several Japanese language train simulator programs as well as the English language Microsoft Train Simulator program. Microsoft Train Simulator includes the railway's Odawara and Hakone Tozan lines, collectively referred to as the "Tokyo-Hakone" route, with the 2000 series commuter trainset and the 7000 series "LSE" Romancecar trainset being player driveable. Several "activities", or scenarios, are included.

Various Odakyu add-ins are available for the BVE Train Simulator, a freeware cab view train simulator for Microsoft Windows.

References

1. Ubukata, Yoshio & Morokawa, Hisashi (1988). Odakyu – Color Books No. 768 (in Japanese). Osaka: Hoikusha. p. 148.
2. Seidensticker, Edward (1990). Tokyo Rising: the city since the great earthquake. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ISBN 0-394-54360-2.
3. [From January 2014, station numbering will be introduced sequentially!] (PDF). odakyu.jp (in Japanese). 24 December 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 October 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
4. [Odakyu Group, station numbers from railways to pirate ships, Introduced sequentially from January 2014]. Response Automotive Media (in Japanese). 28 December 2013. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
5. "9 passengers stabbed or punched on Tokyo train, suspect detained". Kyodo News. 7 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.

Bibliography

• Lee, A. (2011). Tokyo commute: Japanese customs and way of life viewed from the Odakyu Line. Folkestone, Kent: Renaissance Books.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Odakyu Electric Railway.

• Odakyu Electric Railway (in Japanese)
• Odakyu Electric Railway (in English)
• (prominently mentions Odakyu 3000 series SE Romance Car trainsets) (in English)
• Shimochika-navi (concerning construction between Higashi-Kitazawa and Setagaya-Daita stations) (in Japanese)