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Construction of Local Railways

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Construction of Local Railways JAPANESE RAILWAY HISTORY 5 Construction of Local Railways Eiichi Aoki Development of Light Railway Policy As a result of the nationalization of railways in 1906-1807, 17 leading pri- vate railway companies were pur- chased by the government, and only 20 private steam railway companies continued operating. Generally, these companies operated short lines, and only four had a network of more than 50 km. In addition, there were other railways operating electric, horse-drawn and man-powered trains, running mainly on tramways. Construction of railways was be- lieved to contribute to regional devel- opment and activation of agrarian economies, and many local communi- ties were enthusiastic about introduc- I Kubiki Railway (Niigata) No. 2 Engine built by Koppel in 1911. This 9-ton 762-mm gauge ing railways in their districts. Al- locomotive was widely used by Japanese light railways (author) ready in 1907, railway entrepreneurs like Keijiro Amenomiya were making policy was promoted under the leader- cal railways. It is thought that he re- positive investments in introducing ship of Shimpei Goto, the first presi- garded it as important to create an steam locomotives for horse drawn or dent of the Railway Board. As is clear environment to facilitate private in- human-powered tramway running on from the fact that he was a proponent vestments in small-scale local rail- roads, and eight steam tramways of of a broad-gauge plan, Goto made ef- ways. For this purpose, he followed a 762 mm (2’ 6") gauge under his con- forts to radically improve the func- policy of limiting outlay from the gov- trol, were merged into the Dainihon tions of trunk lines, He also had in ernment account to subsidies only. Tramway Co., Ltd. in 1908. mind the popularization of light rail- The Light Railway Act (enforced on However, the government consid- ways to be constructed by private in- 3 August 1910) and the Light Railway ered it undesireble that tramways vestments and their role as branch Subsidiary Act (enforced 1 January with limited train operation and lines for the Government Railways. 1912) were formulated under this safety appliances, spread across Ja- For this purpose, he followed a policy railway policy. pan as popular branch lines. Light of extending subsidies to support light As intended by the government, the railways, having an intermediate railways with poor profitability. Light Railway Act led to many au- technical standard between tram- However, the railway policy most im- tonomous railway construction plans ways and ordinary railways, were portant to Goto was improving the by local communities across the coun- thought to be more desirable, for this functions of railway trunk lines so he try. In a period from August 1910 purpose. avoided investing national financial when the Light Railway Act was en- In those days, Japan’s railway assets all-round in construction of lo- forced to March 1911 when fiscal 1910 Copyright © 1995 EJRCF. All rights reserved. 34 Japan Railway & Transport Review / July 1995 ment Railways in those days. Figure 1 Railways Lines Planned under Revised Railway Construction Act Many light railways were invested in by inhabitants in local communi- ties along the lines. Many stockhold- ers held just 1 or 2 shares, because communities were more or less forced to buy shares allotted according to their own assets. Thus, for most shareholders, their money was not in- vested in the proper sense of the word "investment", but was a contributions shared by villagers. In agrarian ar- eas, landlords owned relatively large Government railways in operation at 31 December 1922 Uncompleted lines under old Railway Construction Act and other uncompleted lines Privately-operated railways at 31 December 1922 (only those necessary for purpose of this article) Planned railway lines shown at the first promulgation of Revised Railway Construction Act Planned railway lines added by 1937 under Revised Railway 050 100 150 200 250 Construction Act km Seats of prefectural governments ended, 23 new companies were li- tach importance to direct connection censed to operate light railways. In of freight cars to the Government addition, 17 railway companies Railways. opened under the Private Railway Act, and nine other private railway Actual Conditions of Light I Toshio Kinoshita (1874-1923) companies under planning or con- (Transportation Museum, Tokyo) structing changed their legal status to Railways Born into a sake-brewing family in Kono-mura light railway by the end of the fiscal The average construction cost of Kyoto Prefecture, he graduated from the Civil En- year. Furthermore, one operating light railways per km was about gineering Department of Tokyo Imperial Univer- tramway was designated as a light sity, and read law and economics in the post- ¥21,000 (1913 values) for the 762-mm graduate course. Employed by the National Rail- railway. Table 1 gives the trends in gauge and about ¥34,000 for the 1067- way Operation Bureau in 1899, he visited Europe total kilometers of light railways up mm (3' 6") gauge. So, it was possible and the United States for study the next year. He stayed in the United States, Germany and Britain to 1926. The kilometers of licensed to construct a short line of about 20 for study from September 1904 to October 1907. railway lines at the end of each fiscal km at a cost of less than ¥500,000. In the United States, he studied the theories of year, increased rapidly from fiscal Nevertheless, most light-railway transportation, railway operation and manage- ment under Professor Emory R. Johnson at the 1911-1913, 3 years after the enforce- companies suffered from shortages of University of Pennsylvania. After his return ment of the Light Railway Act, de- construction funds. Consequently, home, he held responsible posts in the transpor- clined sharply from 1914 to 1917 and they avoided construction of tunnels tation business of the Government Railways, serving as Chief (1908-1914) of the Management climbed again from around fiscal and bridges, and connections with Section, Transportation Department, Railway 1918. Furthermore, the number of Government Railways were at the Board and as Chief of the Transportation Dept. of railway companies starting service, nearest station. Moreover, there were the board. He introduced a major change in the management policy of the Government Railways grew from fiscal 1913 to 1915, stabi- many railway lines not directly con- and realized services for the benefit of users. He lized and then grew again after fiscal necting to main local cities with shop- was instrumental in introducing express trains 1921. Light railways boomed in the 3 and a discount system for group tourists, inviting ping and business centers. Such con- foreign tourists to Japan and publication of tourist years after the Light Railway Act. nections by light railways proved to guides in English, opening the Tokyo Station Ho- Many of the new light railways used be a fatal drawback when bus net- tel and establishing the Tourist Bureau (prede- the 762 mm (2' 6") gauge in addition cessor of Japan Travel Bureau) which all embod- works connected directly to central lo- ied his ideas. to the 1067 mm (3' 6") gauge of the cal cities developed in later years. The Social and Economic Effects of Railways in Government Railways. This was be- There were stations with no railway Japan (1923), compiled at Kinoshita’s initiative, is cause this was the narrowest gauge to highly evaluated as a record of concrete research men, while signal and other security on the social and economic effects of railways. which the Light Railway Subsidiary facilities were minimized. They used The Future of Government Railways (1923), a Act applied. These railways were light rails of 20-25 pounds/yard (10- collection of his articles published posthumously, mainly for passenger transportation, contains articles about railways in competition 12.5 kg/m), weighing less than half with automobiles and shows his farsightedness. and the operators did not need to at- the weight of rails used by the Govern- Copyright © 1995 EJRCF. All rights reserved. Japan Railway & Transport Review / July 1995 35 JAPANESE RAILWAY HISTORY 5 Table 1 Licenses, Terminations of Licenses, and Opening of Significance and Services of Light Railways and Local Railways Development of Revised (Unit: km) Railway Construction Act FY Licenses Changes in Terminations Nationalization Opening of A new Railway Construction Act was designations* of licenses service ** formulated in April 1922. The old Rail- 1910 633.0 769.2 –– –– (374.0) way Construction Act formulated in 1911 1,762.0 289.1 24.4 –– 143.2 1892 was aimed at constructing a net- (7.3) work of railway trunk lines, but the 1912 1,629.6 182.4 86.6 –– 255.3 new Railway Construction Act was in- 1913 1,468.0 36.4 385.5 –– 521.4 tended to expand networks of local 1914 456.0 10.1 439.0 –– 487.6 branch lines. To distinguish it from the 1915 136.0 –– 910.9 –– 469.6 old Construction Laying Act, it is com- 1916 326.6 40.7 478.9 –– 143.9 monly called the Revised Railway Con- (37.1) struction Act. This act stipulated plans 1917 283.3 407.6 415.9 –– 91.1 for construction of railway lines with a (321.9) total length of 10,158 km as shown in 1918 495.2 –– 509.9 –– 230.2 Fig. 1. 1919 1,009.5 –– 194.1 –– 129.4 The Revised Railway Construction 1920 785.2 –– 85.6 130.4 108.4 Act spelled out the policy of large-scale construction of local railways by the 1921 594.3 –– 59.6 –– 250.6 Government Railways, unlike the Light 1922 1,350.1 –– 105.9 35.0 372.8 Railway Act which embodied the basic 1923 954.6 –– 112.3 –– 487.4 government policy that local railway 1924 597.5 –– 730.6 332.8 networks should be constructed with 1925 421.2 –– 260.3 23.8 330.9 private capital.
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