Moonlight Nagara
{{Short description|Japanese seasonal rapid overnight train service (2009–2021)}}
{{italic title}}
{{Infobox rail service
| name = Moonlight Nagara
| image = Jnr 185 C7-B5-9391M 20131226.jpg
| image_width = 300px
| caption = A 185 series EMU formation on a Moonlight Nagara service, December 2013
| type = Rapid
| status = Seasonal operation
| locale = Japan
| predecessor =
| first = 16 March 1996
| last = 29 March 2020 (Final operation)
| successor =
| operator = JR East, JR Central
| formeroperator =
| ridership =
| start = {{STN|Tokyo|x}}
| stops ={{STN|Shinagawa|x}}, {{STN|Yokohama|x}}, {{STN|Odawara|x}}, {{STN|Numazu|x}}, {{STN|Shizuoka|x}}, {{STN|Hamamatsu|x}}, {{STN|Toyohashi|x}}, {{STN|Nagoya|x}}, {{STN|Gifu|x}}
| end = {{STN|Ōgaki|x}}
| distance =
| journeytime = 6:40 westbound, 6:16 eastbound
| frequency = Seasonal
| trainnumber =
| line_used = Tokaido Main Line
| class =
| access =
| seating =
| catering = None
| otherfacilities =
| stock = 185 series EMU
| gauge = {{RailGauge|1067mm}}
| el = 1,500 V DC
| speed =
| owners =
| routenumber =
| map =
| map_state =
}}
The {{nihongo|Moonlight Nagara|ムーンライトながら}} was a seasonal rapid overnight train service operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central), which ran from {{STN|Tokyo|x}} to {{STN|Ōgaki|x}} in Gifu Prefecture via the Tokaido Main Line. From 2009, the service had been offered approximately three weeks per year, corresponding to the spring, summer and year-end holiday seasons.
On 22 January 2021, JR East and JR Central announced the cessation of the Moonlight Nagara service, with no replacements offered at the time, due to increased popularity of highway buses and the ageing of trains operated on the line.{{cite web |last1=佐藤 |first1=正樹 |title=「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 |url=https://response.jp/article/2021/01/22/342427.html |website=レスポンス（Response.jp） |date=22 January 2021 |access-date=22 January 2021 |language=ja}}{{cite web |title=春"の臨時列車の運転計画について |url=https://jr-central.co.jp/news/release/_pdf/000040932.pdf |website=JR Central |access-date=22 January 2021}} Since the train service had not operated during the summer and winter of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this announcement caused 29 March 2020 to be the final run of the Nagara. As a result, this day also marked the complete cessation of "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.{{cite magazine|script-title=ja: DJ時刻表|trans-title= DJ Timetable|magazine=Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine | volume = 43| issue = 357| pages =100–101| publisher = Kōtsū Shimbun | location = Japan |language= ja| date = January 2014}}
| class="wikitable"
|+ Moonlight Nagara 185 Series Formation (4+6 cars) !Car No. !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 1 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 2 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 3 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 4 !! style="border-left:solid 3px #666; background: #FFF2E6"| 5 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 6 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 7 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 8 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 9 !! style="background: #FFF2E6"| 10 |
| Accommodation
| style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="border-left:solid 3px #666; background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved|| style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved || style="background: #FFFAF5"| Reserved |
|---|
- All cars were non-smoking
- Passengers were unable to pass between cars 4 and 5.
- All cars featured reserved seating, meaning a 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
Trains normally comprised three three-car 373 series EMUs operated by JR Central and based at Shizuoka Depot.{{cite book | script-title=ja: JR新幹線＆特急列車ファイル |trans-title= JR Shinkansen & Limited Express Train File| publisher = Kotsu Shimbun | date = 29 August 2008 | location = Japan | page = 138| isbn = 978-4-330-00608-6}} Additional Moonlight Nagara 91 and 92 trains also operated during busy seasons, and these comprised ten-car 183 series EMU sets owned by JR East and based at Tamachi Depot.
File:Image-JNR 165-Ogaki-Night train.jpg|165 series, December 2000
File:ML-NagaraInNagoya.jpg|373 series, September 2007
File:Ml-nagara91-shinagawa.jpg|183/189 series, January 2007
Station list
| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" |Station ! colspan="2" |Distance (km) ! colspan="2" |Time ! colspan="2" |Location ! rowspan="2" |Remarks |
| Name
!Japanese !Between stations !From Tokyo !Westbound !Eastbound !Ward / City !Prefecture / Metropolis |
|---|
| {{STN|Tokyo|x}}
|東京 | - |0.0 |23:10 Departure |5:05 Arrival | rowspan="2" |Tokyo | |
| Shinagawa
|品川 |6.8 |6.8 |23:17 Arrival 23:18 Departure |4:57 Arrival 4:58 Departure | |
| {{STN|Yokohama|x}}
|横浜 |22.0 |28.8 |23:35 Arrival 23:36 Departure |4:40 Arrival 4:41 Departure | rowspan="2" |Kanagawa | |
| {{STN|Odawara|x}}
|小田原 |55.1 |83.9 |0:30 Arrival 0:31 Departure | align="center" |↑ |Westbound: First stop after midnight (12am) |
| {{STN|Numazu|x}}
|沼津 |42.3 |126.2 |1:07 Arrival 1:08 Departure |3:05 Arrival 3:19 Departure | rowspan="3" |Shizuoka | |
| {{STN|Shizuoka|x}}
|静岡 |54.0 |180.2 |1:48 Arrival 1:50 Departure |1:52 Arrival 1:55 Departure | |
| {{STN|Hamamatsu|x}}
|浜松 |76.9 |257.1 |2:46 Arrival 3:15 Departure | 0:46 Arrival 0:55 Departure |Westbound: 29 minutes stop Eastbound: 9 minutes stop |
| {{STN|Toyohashi|x}}
|豊橋 |36.5 |293.6 | align="center" |↓ |0:15 Arrival 0:18 Departure | rowspan="2" |Aichi |Eastbound: First stop after midnight (12am) |
| {{STN|Nagoya|x}}
|名古屋 |72.4 |366.0 | 5:19 Arrival 5:21 Departure | 23:18 Arrival 23:20 Departure | |
| Gifu
|岐阜 |30.3 |396.3 |5:40 Arrival 5:41 Departure |22:58 Arrival 22:59 Departure |Gifu | rowspan="2" |Gifu | |
| Ōgaki
|大垣 |13.7 |410.0 | 5:50 Arrival | 22:48 Departure | |
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.{{cite book | script-title=ja: 列車名鑑1995 |trans-title= Train Name Directory 1995| publisher = Railway Journal| date = 1 August 1995 | location = Japan| page = 128}}
Overnight services on the Moonlight Nagara route had existed in various forms since 1899, when through services commenced between {{STN|Shimbashi|x}} in Tokyo and Kobe, extending as far west as {{STN|Kagoshima|x}} in the 1940s. Prior to World War II, as many as seven overnight round-trip services existed on this route.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} Rail services were cut dramatically in the wake of the war. The line briefly saw three to four daily overnight services in the late 1950s, but electrification of the line, coupled with the opening of the Tokaido Shinkansen high-speed line in 1964, reduced the need for overnight services.
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 {{STN|Toyohashi|x}}.
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.{{cite web |url= http://sankei.jp.msn.com/life/trend/081219/trd0812191556015-n1.htm|script-title=ja:東京発ブルトレ終焉「はやぶさ・富士」廃止へ|trans-title= Hayabusa and Fuji Blue Trains from Tokyo to be abolished|date= 19 December 2008|work= MSN Japan|publisher= The Sankei Shimbun & Sankei Digital|location= Japan|language= ja|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090201070823/http://sankei.jp.msn.com/life/trend/081219/trd0812191556015-n1.htm|archive-date= 1 February 2009|access-date= 28 January 2014}}
See also
References
{{Commons category|Moonlight Nagara}}
{{reflist}}
{{JR East trains}}
Category:Named passenger trains of Japan
Category:East Japan Railway Company
Category:Night trains of Japan
Category:Railway services introduced in 1996
Category:Railway services discontinued in 2020