The history of the Yamada Line, where people were asked, "Are you planning to let even monkeys ride?" [Iwate Prefecture]

, when it was being planned,Are you planning to put monkeys on it?was reportedly met with the question,
in Iwate Prefecturethe JR Yamada Line.
This article will introduce the history and current state of the Yamada Line.

What is the JR Yamada Line?

The Yamada Lineis a JR East line connecting Morioka Station in Iwate Prefecture to Miyako Station on the Pacific coast.
While it previously extended beyond Miyako Station, the entire line, including the section beyond Miyako Station (the formerYamada), now runs within Iwate Prefecture.

The Yamada Line was named afterDistrict,Shimoheithe town of Yamadawhich was the destination of the line.
The Railway Construction Act, promulgated in 1892, already stipulated that the government would construct a railway line from Morioka Station through Miyako Station to Rikuchu-Yamada Station on the Pacific coast.
However, because it was necessary to cross the Kuzakai Pass in the Kitakami Mountains between Morioka Station and Miyako Station, concrete construction plans were slow to materialize. Construction
was finally decided in 1920 when Takashi Hara, a native of Iwate Prefecture and famously known as the "commoner prime minister," became prime minister, and the section from Morioka Station to Rikuchu-Yamada Station opened between 1923 and 1935.

The section south of Rikuchu-Yamada Station was also designated for construction as part of a railway line running from Yamada through Kamaishi to Ofunato, according to the revised Railway Construction Act promulgated in 1922.
The section from Rikuchu-Yamada Station to Kamaishi Station was extended and opened between 1936 and 1939.
The section from Morioka Station through Miyako Station and Rikuchu-Yamada Station to Kamaishi Station was the "Yamada Line" from 1939 to 2019.

The Yamada Line was described as "Are you planning to let even monkeys ride on it?"

The section between Morioka Station and Miyako Station crosses mountainous terrain, and even at the time the construction of the Yamada Line was decided during the Taisho era, it was a sparsely populated area.
Therefore, when the feasibility of constructing the Yamada Line was debated in the Imperial Diet (the predecessor of the current Diet), there is a story that an opposition memberIf we lay a railway here, does the Prime Minister intend to let monkeys ride on"If you read the railway regulations, you will seethat monkeys are not allowed to ride (on the train)which Prime Minister Hara replied,
However, no such statement is recorded in the Imperial Diet minutes (*), and this seems to be merely a popular anecdote.

*As a side note, from the very first plenary session of the Imperial Diet in 1890, not only were minutes summarizing the statements made by attendees created, but also transcripts recording every single statement.
This is considered one of the outstanding features of the Imperial Diet. The fact that
every single word of what was discussed in a national assembly is recorded, and that this is still accessible to anyone on the internet more than 130 years later, is certainly not something that is taken for granted anywhere in the world.

However, a newspaper at the time reported that "Korekimi Nakamura, a member of the House of Peers,made an extreme opposition,saying,
to put monkeys on board?'" Even if Prime Minister Hara's statement that "monkeys will not be allowed on board" is not true,seems plausible that the Yamada Line was indeed met with the question, "Are you planning to put monkeys on board?"it
It's possible that the words attributed to Prime Minister Hara were an exaggeration of the aforementioned statement.

However, once the Yamada Line opened, trains between Morioka Station and Miyako Station became extremely crowded.
There is no doubt that the population along this section of the line has always been sparse, but the demand for travel between Morioka and Miyako was strong.
Furthermore, the Kamaishi Line, which connects Hanamaki Station and Kamaishi Station in Iwate Prefecture, was not fully completed until 1950, after the war, so the Yamada Line played a very important role as a route connecting the inland area of ​​Iwate Prefecture with the Pacific coast.

The Yamada Line is frequently hit by disasters

Despite its important role in Iwate Prefecture's transportation network, the Yamada Line has frequently been plagued by natural disasters.
In 1937, operations were suspended due to heavy snowfall, and in 1944, a freight train derailed after a railway bridge was washed away by an avalanche.
After the war, in 1947, it was hit by landslides caused by Typhoon Kathleen, and it took six months to resume operations on the entire line.
The following year, 1948, it was again damaged by Typhoon Ione, with bridges being washed away, andit took six years to resume operations on the entire line.
It is said that the prolonged closure of the Yamada Line increased the momentum for the construction of the Kamaishi Line, as mentioned earlier.
After the Kamaishi Line opened and began to play a role in connecting the inland areas of Iwate Prefecture with the Pacific coast, the importance of the Yamada Line, both for passenger and freight transport, declined.

In 1980, the line was suspended for nearly five months due to landslides caused by torrential rains.
These frequent natural disasters would greatly influence the fate of the Yamada Line.

Trains that ran on the Yamada Line

The Yamada Line, which connects the inland areas of Iwate Prefecture with the Pacific coast, has seen the operation of various trains since its opening.
," which connects Sendai, Morioka, and Akita stations via the Kamaishi Line, Yamada Line, and Hanawa Line, taking a roundabout route;Rikuchu," which starts at Morioka Station and returns to Morioka Station via the Tohoku Main Line, Kamaishi Line, and Yamada Line;Goyoruns in the reverse direction of the GoyoSotoyama.
There are explanatory articles for each of these trains, so please take a look.

Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT

The legendary Rikuchu express train and its complicated operation [Iwate Prefecture]

https://jp.neft.asia/archives/29510

Today, there are almost no trains that run on unusual routes on Japanese railways. For example, the rapid "Rias" trains that run on the Yamada Line in Iwate Prefecture follow a simple route between Morioka Station and Miyako Station, and operate only within the Yamada Line. There's nothing particularly unusual about them. However, during the days of Japan National Railways (JNR), the predecessor to JR, trains with complex routes ran throughout the country. The "Rikuchu" express train, which we'll introduce today, is a prime example of such a train. The first "Rikuchu" trains connected Ueno Station with Morioka Station and Miyako Station...

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Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT

A trip around Iwate Prefecture!? Express trains "Sotoyama" and "Goyo" from and to Morioka

https://jp.neft.asia/archives/36975

Many trains operate in circular routes on lines such as Tokyo's Yamanote Line, Osaka Prefecture's Osaka Loop Line, and Aichi Prefecture's Nagoya Municipal Subway Meijo Line. This means that if you board a train at one station, it will make a full circuit of the line, allowing you to return to the station where you boarded (whether it makes sense to do so and how fares are calculated in that case are separate issues). And apart from these circular trains, during the days of Japan National Railways (JNR), the predecessor of JR, trains would depart from a starting station, travel across several lines, and eventually return to their starting station...

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, published by Fukuinkan Shoten,Tadayoshi Yamamotothe picture book "Shuppatsu Shinkou!"of the Yamada Line between Morioka Station and Moichi Station, as well as the express trains that run on the Yamada Linecontains sections that appear to be modeled after the section
For more details, please see this article.

Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT

Follow the journey of the picture book "Shuppatsu Shinkou!", which is based on the railways of the Tohoku region

https://jp.neft.asia/archives/29925

Many people have probably read the picture book "Let's Go!," by the late Yamamoto Tadayoshi, published by Fukuinkan Shoten. It was one of my favorite picture books as a child, and I sometimes read it to my own children. This time, I'll explain the train journey depicted in this book, which is set in the Tohoku region. The limited express train on the cover of "Let's Go!" (right) and the express train (right) and local train on the back cover are included in the book's collection. The plot of "Let's Go!" is about "Mother" and "Miyo-chan"...

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Great East Japan Earthquake

The Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11, 2011,significant damage to the facilities of the Yamada Line between Miyako Station and Kamaishi Station,caused
For the damaged section, instead of restoring the railway, the introduction of a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, where the tracks are removed and a dedicated bus road is laid and buses run on it, was considered.
However, ultimately, JR East decided to restore the facilities, and after the restoration, itthe line would be transferred to Sanriku Railway,was decided that
On March 23, 2019, train service resumed between Miyako Station and Kamaishi Station as the "Sanriku Railway Rias Line" after an eight-year hiatus, and it began to operate separately from the section between Morioka Station and Miyako Station, which remains as the JR Yamada Line.

The Yamada Line no longer goes to Yamada Town

As its name suggests, the Yamada Line was originally built with the aim of reaching Yamada Town, but Rikuchu-Yamada Station is included in the Miyako Station to Kamaishi Station section, which was transferred to the Sanriku Railway.
"Yamada Line that doesn't go to Yamadahas become

The area between Morioka Station and Miyako Station has always had a small population along the line, and the number of users of the Yamada Line continues to decline.
According to JR East's data for fiscal year 2023, the average number of users per kilometer per day was 227 between Morioka Station and Kamiyonai Station, 71 between Kamiyonai Station and Miyako Station, and 87 for the entire section between Morioka Station and Miyako Station. This
the lowest number of users on any JR East lineis
The poor environment along the line, which led to comments like "Are you planning to let even monkeys ride this line?", is now becoming a real problem more than 100 years after construction of the Yamada Line began.

Furthermore, while there is still demand for travel between Morioka City and Miyako City, the Yamada Line faces competition from the 106 Express Bus and 106 Rapid Bus, which operate on National Route 106, which runs parallel to the Yamada Line. The Yamada Line, being inferior in terms of travel time and frequency, is struggling.
With the opening of the Miyako-Morioka Expressway in 2021, it is likely that more people are using private cars for travel.
The Yamada Line is facing an even more difficult situation.

However, the line is not being left to decline unchecked.
For example, Morioka City has published a pamphlet introducing the charms and uses of the Yamada Line, and is working to promote its use.

Morioka City Official Website

A comic book introducing the JR Yamada Line, "Does everyone know? The Yamada Line is full of charm" has been published

https://www.city.morioka.iwate.jp/kurashi/douro_kotsu/kokyokotsu/1039129.html

Morioka City Official Website

Furthermore, Iwate Kenpoku Jidosha, which operates the rival 106 Bus, and JR East are collaborating on a demonstration experiment to improve convenience, scheduled from April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.
The experiment involves allowing JR train tickets to be used on the 106 Bus as well.
While it is unclear what conclusions will be drawn from this demonstration experiment, it is hoped that it will lead to improvements in the use of public transportation, not just the Yamada Line.

Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT

[Iwate Prefecture] I participated in a demonstration experiment that allows you to ride the Yamada Line and 106 Express and Express Buses with a JR ticket!

https://jp.neft.asia/archives/32027

A one-year experiment aiming for coexistence between the JR Yamada Line, which connects Morioka and Miyako, and the "106 (Hyakuroku) Limited Express/Express" bus service running on National Route 106 is underway, scheduled for April 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025. I decided to explore the significance of this experiment, which allows passengers to ride privately operated buses with a JR ticket, by actually riding both lines. What is this demonstration experiment for the coexistence of trains and buses? The JR Yamada Line and the Iwate Kenhoku Bus "106 Limited Express/Express" bus service (the Morioka-Kukei section runs on a railway line to the north and a national highway to the south) are both valid for JR tickets (commuter passes and coupon tickets are also accepted, including Seishun...) between Morioka and Miyako.

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The Yamada Line was damaged by heavy rains in August 2024, and as of early December when this article is being written, service is still suspended between Kami-Yonai Station and Miyako Station.
Fortunately, the line will not be permanently closed, and it has been announced that service will resume on December 20th, with extra trains scheduled to run mainly during the year-end and New Year period.
We hope that the Yamada Line trains will continue to run in the future, undeterred by repeated disasters and difficult circumstances.

Yuto Ono

A former railway engineer and current freelance writer who has loved trains since childhood, his dream is to make train travel his career