Marine Liner

The Marine Liner (マリンライナー, Marin Rainā) is the name of a train service in Japan operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) and Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku) since April 1988. The Marine Liner links Okayama, the capital city of Okayama Prefecture and a major station on the Sanyō Shinkansen, with Takamatsu, the capital city of Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, via the Great Seto Bridge. Operating at a top speed of 130 km/h (80 mph), the journey takes approximately 55–60 minutes.

Overview

Since 1 October 2003, the Marine Liner has been operated by JR West 223-5000 series EMU trainsets. The first car on most Takamatsu-bound trains is a JR Shikoku 5000 series bi-level cab car with reserved seating. Previously, 213 series EMUs were used.

From Okayama to Takamatsu, all Marine Liner trains stop at Chayamachi, Kojima and Sakaide. Most trains also stop at either Senoo or Hayashima, or both. Some early morning and late evening trains make additional stops at intermittent stations on the Seto-Ohashi and Yosan lines.

As it is classified as a "Rapid" (快速, kaisoku) service, a standard fare is charged for using the Marine Liner. It currently takes about one hour to cover the entire journey. A passenger may upgrade to reserved seating for an additional fee.

A crew change for the train driver and conductor occurs at Kojima, the boundary station between the two operating railways.

Route

Side view of Marine Liner 5000 series bilevel car at Takamatsu Station, May 2007

The Marine Liner runs over two sections known collectively as the Seto-Ohashi Line. The Okayama-Kojima section is operated by JR West¹, and the Kojima-Takamatsu section is operated by JR Shikoku².

¹Portions run over the JR Uno Line
²Portions run over the JR Yosan Line

Stations

Key (as of December 2006)

Formations

Services are formed as 2-, 3-, 5-, or 7-car formations as shown below with car 1 at the Takamatsu end. All cars are no smoking.

• Green: Green class (first class)
• White: Standard class
• G (green class), R (standard class): Reserved seats
• NR (standard class only): Non-reserved seats

History

The Marine Liner service was introduced in April 1988, using 3-car 213 series EMUs formed as three-car. six-car, or nine-car formations.^[1]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Marine Liner (train).

• JR West Marine Liner information (Japanese)
• JR Shikoku Marine Liner information (Japanese)

Named trains of West Japan Railway Company
Shinkansen	Hakutaka Hikari Kagayaki Kodama Mizuho Nozomi Sakura Tsurugi
Limited express (daytime)	Biwako Express Dinostar Hamakaze Haruka Hashidate Kinosaki Kounotori Kuroshio Maizuru Noto Kagaribi Ohayō Express Oyasumi Express Shirasagi Super Hakuto Super Inaba Super Matsukaze Super Oki Thunderbird Yakumo
Limited express (overnight)	Sunrise Izumo Sunrise Seto
Rapid	Marine Liner
Other	Twilight Express Twilight Express Mizukaze
Discontinued	Akatsuki Asakaze Ginga Izumo Kitaguni Kitakinki Monju Ocean Arrow Raichō Seto Tamba Tango Discovery Tango Explorer

Mass transit in Shikoku
Railways	Asa Kaigan Asatō Line Iyotetsu ■ Takahama Line ■ Yokogawara Line ■ Gunchū Line Takamatsu-Kotohira (Kotoden) ■ Kotoden Kotohira Line ■ Kotoden Nagao Line ■ Kotoden Shido Line Tosaden Tosaden Kōtsū Sanbashi Line Tosaden Kōtsū Ino Line Tosaden Kōtsū Gomen Line Tosa Kuroshio Nakamura Line Asa Line Sukumo Line
JR lines	Dosan Honshi-Bisan Seto-Ōhashi Kōtoku Mugi Naruto Tokushima Uchiko Yodo Yosan
JR trains	Ashizuri Ishizuchi Marine Liner Muroto Nanpū Shimanto Shiokaze Tsurugisan Uwakai Uzushio
Arial Lifts	Shikoku Cable Yakuri Cable Tairyūji Ropeway Unpenji Ropeway Kankakei Ropeway Hashikurasan Ropeway Bizan Ropeway Ishizuchi Tozan Ropeway Matsuyamajō Ropeway
Aviation	Airports Kōchi Matsuyama Takamatsu Tokushima Heliports Komatsushima (JSDF)
Maritime	Uwashima Unyu Ferry(ja) (Yawatahama <=> Beppu) Jumbo Ferry(ja) (Kobe <=> Takamatsu) Nankai Ferry(ja) (Wakayama <=> Takamatsu) Setonaikai Kisen (Matsuyama <=> Hiroshima) Matsuyama Kokura Ferry(ja) (Matsuyama <=> Kokura) First Beach (Etajima and Matsuyama <=> Hiroshima)
Misc	IruCa
Japan transit: Tokyo Osaka Nagoya Fukuoka Hakone Fuji Izu Hokkaido Sendai Niigata Toyama Nagano Okayama Hiroshima Shikoku Metro systems Shinkansen trams (list) aerial lifts (list)