Seibu Chichibu Line

Stations6HistoryOpened14 October 1969; 54 years ago (1969-10-14)TechnicalLine length19.0 km (11.8 mi)Number of tracksSingle-trackTrack gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)Electrification1,500 V DC (overhead catenary)Operating speed105 km/h (65 mph)

The Seibu Chichibu Line (西武秩父線, Seibu Chichibu-sen) is a railway line in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, operated by Seibu Railway. It is an extension of the Seibu Ikebukuro Line, and connects Agano Station and Seibu-Chichibu Station.

Stations

Abbreviations here are for the table below and are not formally used.^[1]

  Local (各停, Kakutei) Stops at all stations.

  Rapid Express (快速急行, Kaisoku Kyūkō) (RE)

  S-Train (エストレイン, Esutorein) (ST)

Morning and evening reserved-seat services between Seibu-Chichibu and Motomachi-Chūkagai via the Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line, Tokyu Toyoko Line and Minatomirai Lines at weekends, and between Tokorozawa and Toyosu via the Tokyo Metro Yurakucho Line on weekdays.

  Limited Express (特急, Tokkyū) (LE): Train named Chichibu (ちちぶ), from Ikebukuro to Seibu Chichibu, with supplementary limited express charge.

Despite the Seibu Chichibu Line only spanning Agano to Seibu-Chichibu, all trains operate through service to the Seibu Ikebukuro Line via Agano Station until at least Hannō Station.

No.	Station	Japanese	Distance (km) to Ikebukuro	RE	ST	LE	Transfers	Location
SI31	Agano	吾野	57.8	O	|	|	Seibu Ikebukuro Line	Hannō	Saitama
SI32	Nishi-Agano	西吾野	61.4	O	|	|
SI33	Shōmaru	正丸	64.1	O	|	|
SI34	Ashigakubo	芦ヶ久保	70.2	O	|	*[Note 1]		Yokoze, Chichibu District
SI35	Yokoze	横瀬	74.2	O	|	O
SI36	Seibu-Chichibu	西武秩父	76.8	O	O	O	Chichibu Railway Main Line (Ohanabatake Station)	Chichibu

^[2] Notes:

History

The entire line was opened on October 14, 1969, after over two years of construction, considerably shortening the travel time between Chichibu and Tokyo. Twenty years later, on April 1, 1989, a connection opened to the Chichibu Railway's Chichibu Main Line, and through service began. On March 28, 1996, freight services between Higashi-Yokoze freight terminal and Shin-Akitsu (on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line) ceased. On March 12, 2003, "wanman" (one man) driver only operation began.

References