Moonlight Nagara
Tokaido Main Line | |
On-board services | |
---|---|
Catering facilities | None |
Technical | |
Rolling stock | 185 series EMU |
Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) |
Electrification | 1,500 V DC |
The Moonlight Nagara (ムーンライトながら) was a seasonal rapid overnight train service operated by
On 22 January 2021, both East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) announced the cessation of the Moonlight Nagara services with no replacements offered at the time, due to the increased popularity of highway buses and the ageing trains operated on the line.[1][2] Since the train service had not operated during the summer and winter of 2020 due to the COVID-19 situation, this announcement made 29 March 2020, the last day of operations of the Nagara service. That day also marked the complete cessation of the "Moonlight"-branded services from Japan.
Rolling stock
From December 2013, Moonlight Nagara services were formed from 185 series electric multiple unit (EMU) 10-car (4+6-car) formations based at Omiya Depot.[3]
Car No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Accommodation | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved | Reserved |
- No smoking for all cars
- Passengers were unable to go between cars 4 and 5.
- Reserved = "Seat Reservation Ticket" (座席指定券) was required to board the train
Past rolling stock
- 165 series EMUs
- 373 series EMU 9-car formations
- 183/189 series EMUs
From the introduction of the Moonlight Nagara service, trains normally comprised three three-car
-
165 series, December 2000
-
373 series, September 2007
-
183/189 series, January 2007
Station list
Station | Distance (km) | Time | Location | Remarks | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Japanese | Between
stations |
From
Tokyo |
Westbound
(-> Ōgaki)[5] |
Eastbound
(-> Tokyo)[6] |
Ward / City | Prefecture /
Metropolis | |
Tokyo | 東京 | - | 0.0 | 23:10 Departure | 5:05 Arrival | Chiyoda | Tokyo | |
Shinagawa | 品川 | 6.8 | 6.8 | 23:17 Arrival
23:18 Departure |
4:57 Arrival
4:58 Departure |
Minato | ||
Yokohama | 横浜 | 22.0 | 28.8 | 23:35 Arrival
23:36 Departure |
4:40 Arrival
4:41 Departure |
Yokohama | Kanagawa | |
Odawara | 小田原 | 55.1 | 83.9 | 0:30 Arrival
0:31 Departure |
↑ | Odawara | Westbound: First stop after midnight (12am) | |
Numazu | 沼津 | 42.3 | 126.2 | 1:07 Arrival
1:08 Departure |
3:05 Arrival
3:19 Departure |
Numazu | Shizuoka | |
Shizuoka | 静岡 | 54.0 | 180.2 | 1:48 Arrival
1:50 Departure |
1:52 Arrival
1:55 Departure |
Shizuoka
|
||
Hamamatsu | 浜松 | 76.9 | 257.1 | 2:46 Arrival
3:15 Departure |
0:46 Arrival
0:55 Departure |
Hamamatsu | Westbound: 29 minutes stop
Eastbound: 9 minutes stop | |
Toyohashi | 豊橋 | 36.5 | 293.6 | ↓ | 0:15 Arrival
0:18 Departure |
Toyohashi | Aichi | Eastbound: First stop after midnight (12am) |
Nagoya | 名古屋 | 72.4 | 366.0 | 5:19 Arrival
5:21 Departure |
23:18 Arrival
23:20 Departure |
Nagoya | ||
Gifu | 岐阜 | 30.3 | 396.3 | 5:40 Arrival
5:41 Departure |
22:58 Arrival
22:59 Departure |
Gifu | Gifu | |
Ōgaki | 大垣 | 13.7 | 410.0 | 5:50 Arrival | 22:48 Departure | Ōgaki |
History
The Moonlight Nagara service was introduced on 16 March 1996. The name was taken from the Nagara River in Gifu Prefecture, and was formerly used for a semi express service which ran between Tokyo and Ōgaki from 1 June 1960 until 1 October 1965.[7]
Overnight services on the Moonlight Nagara route had existed in various forms since 1899, when through services commenced between
Initially, cars 4 to 9 were designated as non-reserved seating cars west of Yokohama Station, but from the start of the March 2007 timetable revision, all cars were designated as reserved seating between Tokyo and Toyohashi.[4]
The service's popularity declined in the 2000s due to competition from discounted overnight bus services. From 14 March 2009, the Moonlight Nagara stopped running on a daily basis and became a seasonal train running only during busy periods.[8]
See also
References
- ^ 佐藤, 正樹. "「青春18」族に悲報…「大垣夜行」の歴史にピリオド 『ムーンライトながら』運行終了". レスポンス(Response.jp) (in Japanese). Retrieved 22 January 2021.
- ^ "春"の臨時列車の運転計画について" (PDF). JR Central. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
- ^ DJ時刻表 [DJ Timetable]. Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 43, no. 357. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. January 2014. pp. 100–101.
- ^ ISBN 978-4-330-00608-6.
- ^ "JR East Timetable (Moonlight Nagara Westbound)". JR East.
- ^ "JR East Timetable (Moonlight Nagara Eastbound)". JR East.
- ^ 列車名鑑1995 [Train Name Directory 1995]. Japan: Railway Journal. 1 August 1995. p. 128.
- ^ 東京発ブルトレ終焉「はやぶさ・富士」廃止へ [Hayabusa and Fuji Blue Trains from Tokyo to be abolished]. MSN Japan (in Japanese). Japan: The Sankei Shimbun & Sankei Digital. 19 December 2008. Archived from the original on 1 February 2009. Retrieved 28 January 2014.