Yurikamome

New Transit Yurikamome (新交通ゆりかもめ, Shinkōtsū Yurikamome), formerly the Tokyo Waterfront New Transit Waterfront Line (東京臨海新交通臨海線, Tōkyō Rinkai Shinkōtsū Rinkai-sen), is an automated guideway transit service operated by Yurikamome, Inc., connecting Shimbashi to Toyosu, via the artificial island of Odaiba in Tokyo, Japan, a market in which it competes with the Rinkai Line.

Yurikamome
A Yurikamome train near Shiodome in June 2007
Overview
Other name(s)U
Native name新交通ゆりかもめ
OwnerYurikamome, Inc. (direct)
Tokyo Rinkai Holdings Company, Ltd. (TRHC; indirect)
Tokyo Metropolitan Government (ultimate; largest shareholder in the TRHC)[1]
LocaleTokyo, Japan
Termini
Stations16
Websiteyurikamome.co.jp
Service
TypeAutomated guideway transit
Operator(s)Yurikamome, Inc.
Depot(s)Ariake
Rolling stock7300 series, 7500 series
(6-carriage train)
Daily ridership133,000/day (FY 2018)[2]
History
OpenedNovember 1, 1995[2]
Technical
Line length14.7 km (9.1 mi)
Number of tracksDouble-track
Electrification600 V 50 Hz 3-phase AC Third rail
Operating speed60 km/h (37 mph)
Route map

km
km
Kachidoki E
 
proposed
JK JO JT JY AG
extension
 
Shimbashi
0.0
14.7
 Toyosu Y
E Shiodome
0.4
14.0
 Shin-toyosu
Izu Islands Takeshiba
1.6
13.5
 Shijō-mae
Hinode
2.2
Ariake North Bridge
Shibaura-futō
3.1
12.7
 Ariake-Tennis-no-mori
Rainbow Bridge
12.0
 Ariake R
Odaiba-kaihinkōen
7.0
depot
Daiba
7.8
11.3
 Tokyo Big Sight
Tokyo International
Cruise Terminal
8.4
Akemi Bridge
Telecom Center
9.2
10.2
 Aomi
km
km

The line is named after the black-headed gull (yurikamome in Japanese),[3] a common denizen of Tokyo Bay and the official metropolitan bird.[4]

History

Before its 1995 opening, it was widely feared that the Yurikamome would end up as a multibillion-yen white elephant. The artificial island of Odaiba, which it serves, had been designed and constructed at prodigious expense before Japan's economic crash and, much like London's equally beleaguered Canary Wharf, there simply did not seem to be enough demand to support it. In the first few months of operation, ridership hovered around 27,000 passengers per day,[5] only a little less than the predicted 29,000, but still far less than the 80,000 passengers needed to be profitable.

However, in 1996, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government re-zoned Odaiba from pure business and residential to also permit entertainment zones. The island provided Tokyo with a strip of livable seaside, and within one year, ridership doubled to 60,000.[5] As more and more restaurants, shopping malls, exhibition centers and museums opened, traffic continued to grow.[5]

It is not just the island that became popular, as the Yurikamome had become an attraction in itself.[5] To raise itself from ground level to the Rainbow Bridge, the Yurikamome makes a 270-degree loop, providing panoramic views of both mainland Tokyo and Odaiba.[5]

An accident on the Yurikamome occurred on the afternoon of 14 April 2006. According to a government commission, one of the axles on the six-car train was cracked due to metal fatigue, causing a rubber tire on the train to fall off.[9] The train came to a halt near Fune-no-kagakukan station, and services were suspended on the entire line.[1] This came at the start of a busy weekend when events were taking place at Tokyo Big Sight on Odaiba, but, according to news reports, alternate means of transportation were offered and there was no major confusion. The Yurikamome resumed limited train service on April 17 while further inspections and tests continued, with full service restored on 19 April.

Future plans

At over 110,000 passengers per day, the Yurikamome is making a net profit and will pay off its loans in full faster than the 20 years originally anticipated. Operating frequency, hours of operation and number of trainsets have been continually revised upwards to accommodate the ever-increasing number of passengers.

A further extension from Toyosu to Kachidoki is currently under consideration.[10] The extension has become more likely as part of infrastructure improvements for the 2020 Summer Olympics, which will largely be held within the Yurikamome corridor around Toyosu, Ariake and Odaiba, with six competition venues along its route.[11][12]

Technology
View from the Yurikamome

The Yurikamome is Tokyo's first fully automated transit system, controlled entirely by computers with no drivers on board. However, the line is not the first in Japan, as Kobe's Port Liner opened in 1981, 14 years before the Yurikamome.[13][11][14]

The Yurikamome is sometimes mistakenly called a monorail, but the trains run with rubber-tired wheels on elevated concrete track guided by the side walls.

Stations

Since 2006, all the stations use the recorded voices of different voice actors for their Japanese-language announcements.[15] The letter "U" is used as the symbol for station numbers rather than "Y" for Yurikamome as this letter is already used as the acronym for the Tokyo Metro Yurakucho Line.

No. Station Japanese Distance (km) Transfers Location Voice actor
(Japanese)
Between
stations		 Total
U01 Shimbashi 新橋 0.0 0.0
Minato Masumi Asano
U02 Shiodome 汐留 0.4 0.4
Hiro Shimono
U03 Takeshiba 竹芝 1.2 1.6 Chiaki Takahashi
U04 Hinode 日の出 0.6 2.2 Yurika Ochiai
U05 Shibaura-futō 芝浦ふ頭 0.9 3.1 Maria Yamamoto
 Rainbow Bridge crossing
U06 Odaiba-kaihinkōen お台場海浜公園 3.9 7.0 Kenichi Suzumura
U07 Daiba 台場 0.8 7.8 Toshiyuki Morikawa
U08 Tokyo International Cruise Terminal 東京国際クルーズターミナル 0.6 8.4 Kōtō Motoki Takagi
U09 Telecom Center テレコムセンター 0.8 9.2 Kaori Mizuhashi
U10 Aomi 青海 1.0 10.2 Kōsuke Toriumi
U11 Tokyo Big Sight 東京ビッグサイト 1.1 11.3 Mikako Takahashi
U12 Ariake 有明 0.7 12.0
Mai Nakahara
U13 Ariake-Tennis-no-mori 有明テニスの森 0.7 12.7 Chihiro Suzuki
U14 Shijō-mae 市場前駅 0.8 13.5 Tatsuhisa Suzuki
U15 Shin-toyosu 新豊洲 0.5 14.0 Natsuko Kuwatani
U16 Toyosu 豊洲 0.7 14.7
Sōichirō Hoshi

Yurikamome trains are taken in and out of service at Ariake, and are stored in a yard near Tokyo Big Sight when not in service.

Ridership
Route of Yurikamome

Ridership on the line peaked at over 200,000 daily boardings in 2000,[16] but declined substantially by 2004 as the Rinkai Line, which opened a year after the Yurikamome Line, expanded into more of the waterfront area and offered lower fares. Between 2004 and 2006, four new stations were added, which raised ridership slightly.

Station 2000 2004 2006
U-01Shimbashi 94,217 63,791 58,824
U-02Shiodome -- 7,500 7,805
U-03Takeshiba 4,681 9,301 4,701
U-04Hinode 1,675 2,043 2,271
U-05Shibaura-futō 6,970 5,875 5,166
U-06Odaiba-kaihinkōen 19,406 15,859 14,497
U-07Daiba 28,838 22,866 21,682
U-08Tokyo International Cruise Terminal
(former name: Fune-no-kagakukan)		 2,734 3,506 3,579
U-09Telecom Center 13,561 11,233 10,649
U-10Aomi 11,529 7,152 7,153
U-11Tokyo Big Sight
(former name: Kokusai-tenjijō-seimon)		 21,420 13,885 16,312
U-12Ariake 3,531 2,509 3,743
U-13Ariake-Tennis-no-mori -- -- 1,185
U-14Shijō-mae -- -- 76
U-15Shin-toyosu -- -- 893
U-16Toyosu -- -- 9,494
Totals 208,562 165,520 168,030

Rolling stock

The line uses Mitsubishi Heavy Industries rubber-tired "Crystal Mover" technology.[17] As of 8 April 2021, the following train types are used on the line, all formed as six-car sets.[18]

  • 7000 series
  • 7200 series
  • 7300 series
  • 7500 series

Between 2014 and 2016, a fleet of 18 new six-car 7300 series trains are being introduced on the line.[19] The first train was test run during the summer of 2013,[19] entering revenue service from 18 January 2014.[20] The new trains have longitudinal seating throughout, to increase overall capacity and speed-up boarding and alighting.[19] Between June 2018 and June 2020, eight more six-car trainsets will be built for the line by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to replace the fleet of 7200 series trains.[21]

7000 series
7000 series set 17 in August 2011

As of 1 April 2016, four out of the original 18 7000 series sets (05, 16, 17, and 18) were still in service, formed as six-car sets as follows.[18]

Car No.123467
Designation Mc1M2M3M4M5Mc6
Numbering 7xx17xx27xx37xx47xx57xx6

("xx" stands for the unit number.)

7200 series
7200 series set 21 in March 2006

As of 1 April 2016, eight 7200 series sets (21 to 28) were in service, formed as six-car sets as follows.[18]

Car No.123467
Designation Mc1M2M3M4M5Mc6
Numbering 72x172x272x372x472x572x6

("xx" stands for the unit number.)

7300 series
7300 series set 31 in November 2018

As of 2021, 18 7300 series sets (31 to 48) are in service, formed as six-car sets as follows.[22]

Car No.123467
Designation Mc1M2M3M4M5Mc6
Numbering 73x173x273x373x473x573x6

("xx" stands for the unit number.)

7500 series
7500 series set 51 in November 2018

As of 11 November 2018, one 7500 series set (51) were in service, formed as six-car sets as below.[18] In November 2020, delivery of the eight six-car sets was completed.[23]

Car No.123467
Designation Mc1M2M3M4M5Mc6
Numbering 75x175x275x375x475x575x6

("xx" stands for the unit number.)

In fiction

The line is featured in the anime Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club from the Love Live! franchise, with a fictional station bearing the school's name from the show.

See also


References
  1. "Unmanned Tokyo transit line remains shut down". The Japan Times. 16 April 2006. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  2. "会社概要". YURIKAMOME Inc. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  3. University of Michigan. "Developing Metros". Developing Metros: A Railway Gazette International Publication. Transport Press: 6. 1996. ISSN 0268-5590. OCLC 12264501.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  4. "Tokyo's Symbols". Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  5. Iwata, Kazuaki (June 1998). "Tokyo's New Waterfront Transit System" (PDF). Japan Rail and Transport Review.
  6. "鉄道発祥の地「汐留」に、新しい街と新しい駅－都営地下鉄大江戸線、新交通ゆりかもめ「汐留駅」１１月２日に開業－" [A new town and a new station in Shiodome, the birthplace of railways: Toei Oedo Line, New Transit Yurikamome “Shiodome Station” Opens November 2nd]. kotsu.metro.tokyo.jp. 12 July 2002. Archived from the original on 15 October 2002. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  7. Terada, Hirokazu (19 January 2013). データブック日本の私鉄 [Databook: Japan's Private Railways]. Japan: Neko Publishing. pp. 216–220. ISBN 978-4-7770-1336-4.
  8. "船の科学館駅及び国際展示場正門駅の駅名改称日が決まりました！" [The date of renaming the Fune-no-Kagakukan Station and the International Exhibition Center Main Gate Station has been decided!] (PDF). yurikamome.co.jp (in Japanese). 15 January 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  9. "2ND LD: Yurikamome wheel fell off as result of metal fatigue: gov't". Japan: Yahoo News Online. 17 April 2007. Archived from the original on 11 September 2007.
  10. "東京都港湾局 臨海副都心まちづくり推進計画 都市基盤の整備". Kouwan.metro.tokyo.jp. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  11. "Rubber-Tired Trains in City Transport". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, Inc. 27 September 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  12. "五輪で東京に1000万人 過密都市ゆえの課題多く" [10 million people in Tokyo for Olympics, Many problems due to overcrowded city]. 日本経済新聞. 10 September 2013. Archived from the original on 31 July 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
  13. "Around the world: 1,000km of fully automated metros". Railway Technology. Verdict Media Group Limited. 25 June 2018. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  14. Chung, Riley (1996) [July 1996]. National Institute of Standards and Technology (U.S.), Building and Fire Research Laboratory (U.S.). "The January 17, 1995 Hyogoken-Nanbu (Kobe) Earthquake: Performance of Structures, Lifelines, and Fire Protection Systems". Volume 18 of ICSSC TR & Volume 901 of NIST Special Publication. U.S. Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, 1996: 235. LCCN 96207874 – via Google Books.
  15. "Voice guide device". yurikamome.co.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 16 February 2007.
  16. "東京臨海新交通 ゆりかもめ メディアロッカー" [Tokyo Rinkai New Transit Yurikamome Media Locker] (PDF). Field Media Network. Fmn-inc.co.jp. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 November 2006. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  17. "Automated People Mover". Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. 2015. Archived from the original on 9 March 2017. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  18. 私鉄車両編成表 2016 [Private Railway Rolling Stock Formations - 2016] (in Japanese). Japan: Kotsu Shimbunsha. 25 July 2016. p. 79. ISBN 978-4-330-70116-5.
  19. "ゆりかもめ 新型車輌7300系を導入" [Yurikamome: New 7300 series trains to be introduced]. Tetsudo Hobidas (in Japanese). Japan: Neko Publishing. 15 March 2013. Archived from the original on 3 October 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  20. "ゆりかもめ7300系が営業運転を開始" [Yurikamome 7300 series enters revenue service]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 19 January 2014. Archived from the original on 4 August 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  21. "新交通ゆりかもめ向け 全自動無人運転車両（AGT）48両を受注 2020年に向けて納入" [Order received for 48 AGT vehicles for Yurikamome to be delivered by 2020]. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (in Japanese). Japan. 23 September 2016. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  22. 私鉄車両編成表2021 [Private Railway Vehicle Organization Table 2021] (in Japanese). Japan: Kotsu Shimbunsha. 16 July 2021. p. 85. ISBN 9784330032214.
  23. "Light metro cars bring a fresh breeze to Tokyo's waterfront". Railway Gazette. 13 November 2020. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
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