is a Japanese private railway

Private railway

A private railroad is a railroad run by a private corporation, as opposed to a railroad run by a public sector.-Japan:In Japan, refers to a railway line owned and operated by private sector. Although Japan Railways Group companies are private entities, they are not considered private railways...

 company which operates in Shiga Prefecture

Shiga Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan, which forms part of the Kansai region on Honshu Island. The capital is the city of Ōtsu.- History :Shiga was known as Ōmi Province or Gōshū before the prefectural system was established...

, and a member of the Seibu

Seibu Railway

is a conglomerate based in Tokorozawa, Japan, with principal business areas in railways, tourism and real estate. Seibu Railway's operations are concentrated in northwest Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture; the name "Seibu" is an abbreviation of "west Musashi," referring to the historic name for this area...

 group since 1943. The company is named after the Ōmi Province

Omi Province

is an old province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō circuit. It is nicknamed as .Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake, is located at the center of the province...

, the former name of the present-day Shiga. The railway is nicknamed by local users because of its noisy sound.

History

Ohmi Railway is the longest private railway company in Shiga. The company was founded in 1896 and started train services from Hikone to Echigawa in 1898. The company was a subsidiary of from 1926 to 1942. In 1944, the company absorbed the , now the Yokaichi Line.

Lines

Ohmi Railway consists of three lines: the Main Line, and two branch lines, the Yōkaichi Line and the Taga Line.

The Main Line connects with the Tōkaidō Main Line

Tokaido Main Line

The is the busiest trunk line of the Japan Railways Group , connecting Tōkyō and Kōbe stations. It is long, not counting its many freight feeder lines around the major cities...

 (Biwako Line), the Hokuriku Main Line

Hokuriku Main Line

The is a 358.3 kilometer line of the West Japan Railway Company from Maibara Station in Maibara, Shiga to Naoetsu Station in Jōetsu, Niigata. It serves the Hokuriku region on the northern central coast of Honshū, the largest island of Japan, as well as offering connections to the regions of...

 and the Tōkaidō Shinkansen at Maibara, the Biwako Line at Hikone, and the Kusatsu Line

Kusatsu Line

The is a railway line in western Japan operated by West Japan Railway Company . It connects Tsuge on the Kansai Main Line with Kusatsu on the Biwako Line .-Stations:...

 and the Shigaraki Kōgen Railway

Shigaraki Kogen Railway

is a Japanese Third Sector railway company whose investors are Shiga Prefecture and the city of Koka.The railway operates the Shigaraki Line, a former Japanese National Railways line that was transferred to the third sector in 1987. The Shigaraki Line runs from Kibukawa on the JR West Kusatsu Line...

 at Kibukawa. The Yōkaichi Line connects with the Biwako Line at Ōmi-Hachiman.

Line	Section	Length (km)	Stations	Date opened
Main Line Ohmi Railway Main Line The is a regional railway line in Shiga Prefecture operated by Ohmi Railway. It connects the cities of Maibara and Koka. It is running parallel with the Tōkaidō Shinkansen between Takamiya and Gokasho.The line is long, stretching from Maibara to Kibukawa...	-	47.7	25	June 11, 1898
Yōkaichi Line Ohmi Railway Yokaichi Line The is a regional railway line in Shiga Prefecture operated by Ohmi Railway.The line is 9.3 km long, connecting Yōkaichi on the Main Line in Higashiōmi to Ōmi-Hachiman on the JR West Biwako Line in Omihachiman....	-	9.3	6	December 29, 1913
Taga Line Ohmi Railway Taga Line The is a regional railway line in Shiga Prefecture operated by Ohmi Railway. It connects Hikone city and Taga town.The single-track line is long, connecting Takamiya on the Main Line in Hikone to Taga Taisha-mae in Taga...	-	2.5	2	March 8, 1914
Total		59.5	33

At first, the Main Line was planned to connect Hikone and Fukawa (now Kōnan

Konan Station (Shiga)

is a train station in Koka, Shiga, Japan.-Stations next to Kōnan:...

) and run through to Ujiyamada

Ujiyamada Station

is a train station on the Kintetsu Yamada Line and Toba Line located in Ise, Mie Prefecture, Japan.It was established as the closest station to Ise Grand Shrine and thus played an important role for tourists and pilgrims, especially in the past when trains were the most pervasive form of...

. The Yōkaichi Line had a 2.8 km branch line from Shin-Yōkaichi

Shin-Yokaichi Station

is a train station in Higashiomi, Shiga, Japan.-Stations next to Shin-Yōkaichi: -External links:...

 to Misono between 1930 and 1964.

Other services

The company also operates bus lines, taxis, Hachimanyama Ropeway

Hachimanyama Ropeway

The is Japanese aerial lift line in Ōmihachiman, Shiga, operated by Ohmi Railway. Opened in 1962, the line climbs Mount Hachiman, where there was Hachiman Castle built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi...

, Shizugatake Lift, ships of Lake Biwa

Lake Biwa

is the largest freshwater lake in Japan, located in Shiga Prefecture , northeast of the former capital city of Kyoto. Because of its proximity to the ancient capital, references to Lake Biwa appear frequently in Japanese literature, particularly in poetry and in historical accounts of battles.-...

, a tour operator, a onsen

Onsen

An is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth...

 hotel, two expressway service areas, a campsite, a driving school and parks in Shiga.

External links

• Ohmi Railway Group
• Ohmitetudo channel - YouTube
  YouTube
  YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....