The is an Japanese railway line in Fukuoka prefecture, run by the private railway operator Nishi-Nippon Railroad (Nishitetsu). It links Kaizuka Station in Higashi-ku, Fukuoka with Nishitetsu Shingū Station in Shingū. It connects to the Kashii Line of JR Kyushu at , and the Hakozaki Line of Fukuoka City Subway at Kaizuka.
The line was long until Nishitetsu closed the 9.9 km section between Nishitetsu Shingū and Tsuyazaki stations on April 1, 2007.Nishitetsu News Release (2007-02-20) 宮地岳線一部区間廃止に伴う路線名変更および鉄道・バス運行概要決定のお知らせ (Japanese) Until then, the line was called .
The Kaizuka Line is the most congested railway line in Japan outside the Tokyo Metropolitan area. In Fiscal Year 2022 the congestion rate between Najima and Kaizuka stations was 154% during the morning peak, making it the 2nd most congested railway line in Japan. In Fiscal Year 2023 the congestion rate was 158%, which was equal 5th most congested and the only line outside the Tokyo Metropolitan Area in the list of top 10 most congested railway lines.
Services All services on the Kaizuka Line are Local trains, stopping at all stations.
, services operate every 10 minutes during weekday morning & afternoon peaks, and every 15 minutes at other times.
Rolling stock
(introduced 2026)
Station list Station nameJapaneseDistance (km)ConnectionsLocationNK 01 貝塚0.0Fukuoka City Subway Hakozaki LineHigashi-ku, FukuokaFukuoka PrefectureNK 02 名島1.4 NK 03 西鉄千早2.5 Kagoshima Main Line ()NK 04 香椎宮前3.0 NK 05 西鉄香椎3.6 Kagoshima Main Line ()NK 06 香椎花園前5.0 NK 07 唐の原6.1 NK 08 和白7.2 Kashii LineNK 09 三苫9.0 NK 10 西鉄新宮11.0 Shingū
History The Hakata Bay Railway opened the gauge Shinhakata to Wajiro line in 1924, and extended the line to Miyajidake the following year. The line was electrified at 1,500 V DC in 1929. The company merged with the Nishi-Nippon Railway in 1942. The 1 km section from Miyajidake to Tsuyazaki opened in 1951, and in 1954 the line was re-gauged to and connected to the Fukuoka line.
The line was grade separated over the JR Kashii Line at Wajiro Station in 1966, and CTC signalling was commissioned in 1978.
In 1986, the Shinhakata to Kaizuka section was closed and replaced by the Fukuoka City Subway Hakozaki Line.
In 2007, the 10 km Nishitetsu Shingū to Tsuyazaki section closed due to declining patronage.
References This article incorporates material from the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia.