Tateyama Tunnel Trolleybus

{{Infobox rail line

| image = Tateyama tunnel trolley bus 01.jpg

| native_name =

| native_name_lang =

| type = Trolleybus in exclusive tunnel

| system = Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route

| locale = Toyama Prefecture, Japan

| start = Murodō Station

| end = Daikanbō Station

| ridership2 = 735,000 (annual, 2002)

| website = {{official url}}

| open = {{start date and age|1971|04}}

| operator = Tateyama Kurobe Kankō Company

| stock =

| linelength_km = 3.7

| electrification =

| elevation_m = 2450

}}

The {{nihongo|Tateyama Tunnel Trolleybus|立山トンネルトロリーバス|Tateyama Tonneru Tororībasu}}, officially the {{nihongo|Trolleybus Line|無軌条電車線|Mukijō Densha-sen}}, was a Japanese trolleybus line in Tateyama, Toyama, operated by the Tateyama Kurobe Kankō Company, and was the last trolleybus service in Japan in its final years. Now operated by battery-electric buses, the line is entirely underground (in tunnel), including both termini. The line is a part of the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, a sightseeing route to the Kurobe Dam that also includes bus, funicular and aerial tramway lines.

It was the last remaining trolleybus line in Japan, following the similar conversion of the Kanden Tunnel Trolleybus line to battery operation in November 2018.{{cite web|url=https://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/pr/2018/pdf/0410_1j_01.pdf|title=410_1j_01.pdf|publisher=Kansai Electric Power Company|accessdate=2018-12-15}} It was also the last non-museum trolleybus line in the world using right-hand drive vehicles running left-hand.Trolleybus Magazine No. 377 (September–October 2024), p. 209. National Trolleybus Association (UK). {{issn|0266-7452}}. Trolleybus operation was permanently discontinued at the end of the 2024 season.Trolleybus Magazine No. 380 (March–April 2025), p. 79. National Trolleybus Association (UK). {{issn|0266-7452}}. Battery-electric buses took over the service at the beginning of the 2025 season.

History

The line originally opened as a normal (diesel) bus line in April 1971,Trolleybus Magazine No. 209 (September–October 1996), pp. 124–125. National Trolleybus Association (UK). {{issn|0266-7452}}. but was later re-equipped for trolleybuses. The trolleybus line opened on 23 April 1996.Murray, Alan (2000). World Trolleybus Encyclopaedia. Yateley, Hampshire, UK: Trolleybooks. {{ISBN|0-904235-18-1}}.

Route and services

File:Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, Map (English).jpg and Daikanbō Stations|left]]

The Tateyama Tunnel Trolleybus forms a component of the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, a mountain sightseeing route between Tateyama, Toyama and Ōmachi, Nagano. The trolleybus line connects to the Tateyama Highland Bus at its western terminus, and to the Tateyama Ropeway at its eastern terminus.{{Cite web |title=Modes of Transportation |url=https://www.alpen-route.com/en/transport/modes.html |access-date=2024-10-22 |work=Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route}}

The trolleybus line operates in an exclusive tunnel through Tateyama (Mount Tate), whose peak reaches a height of {{Convert|3015|m|ft|abbr=on}}. Murodō Station, the western terminus, is at an elevation of {{Convert|2450|m|ft|abbr=on}}, descending to {{Convert|2316|m|ft|abbr=on}} at the eastern terminus of Daikanbō Station. Murodō Station is the highest elevation on the Alpine Route, which ascends from near sea level at Toyama Station.

There are no intermediate stations in the tunnel, and all buses run nonstop between the two stations. The {{Convert|3.7|km|mi|abbr=on}} journey takes approximately 10 minutes. The majority of the tunnel is a single lane, with a passing lane provided.{{Cite web |last=Oya |first=Hideyuki |date=2023-12-12 |title=Last of Japan's trolleybuses to run for the final time in late 2024 |url=https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15081798 |access-date=2024-10-22 |work=The Asahi Shimbun}}

Regulation

When it was operated with trolleybuses, the Tateyama Tunnel Trolleybus was regulated as a railway under the terms of the {{Interlanguage link|Railway Business Law|ja|鉄道事業法}}, which contains provisions for "special railways," which also covers monorails, suspension railways, and cable railways.{{Cite web |date=2018-07-30 |title=Technical Regulatory Standards on Japanese Railways |url=https://www.mlit.go.jp/english/2006/h_railway_bureau/Laws_concerning/14.pdf |access-date=2024-10-22 |publisher=Railway Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism}}

Statistics

File:Inside Tateyama Tunnel, passing trolleybus.jpg

Distance: {{Convert|3.7|km|mi|abbr=on}}Trolleybus Magazine (TM) No. 202 (July–August 1995), p. 106. ISSN 0266-7452.
Stations: 2
Double-track line: None
Electric supply: 600 V DC
Railway signalling: Automatic signal system
Buses start while the signal is clear, and the number of vehicles is counted.
Fleet (1996–2024): 8 trolleybuses, built in 1995–96 by Osaka Sharyo Kogyo (on Mitsubishi Fuso chassis), numbered 8001–8008.
Ridership: 735,000 per year (2002){{Cite journal |last=Kishi |first=Yuichiro |date=October 2005 |title=Railway Operators in Japan 15: Untypical Railways |url=https://www.ejrcf.or.jp/jrtr/backissue/index_backissue.html |journal=Japan Railway & Transport Review |location=Tokyo |publisher=East Japan Railway Culture Foundation |volume=41 |pages=40–49 |access-date=}}

Closure as trolleybus

On 11 December 2023, Tateyama Kurobe Kankō announced plans to discontinue its trolleybus service on 1 December 2024 and replace it with battery-electric bus service from April 2025.{{Cite web |date=11 December 2023 |title=立山トンネルの無軌条電車(トロリーバス)事業廃止、電気バス導入へ |trans-title=Tateyama Tunnel trackless train (trolleybus) business to be abolished, electric buses to be introduced |url=https://news.mynavi.jp/article/20231211-2838987/ |access-date=3 June 2024 |website=Mynavi News |publisher=Mynavi Corporation |language=Japanese |publication-place=Japan}}Trolleybus Magazine No. 374 (March–April 2024), p. 79. National Trolleybus Association (UK). {{issn|0266-7452}}. In keeping with plans reported in June 2024,{{Cite web |date=2 June 2024 |title=「立山トンネルトロリーバス」ラストラン記念イベントの詳細を発表 |trans-title=Details of the "Tateyama Tunnel Trolley Bus" last run commemorative event announced |url=https://news.mynavi.jp/article/20240602-2956512/ |access-date=3 June 2024 |website=Mynavi News |publisher=Mynavi Corporation |language=Japanese |publication-place=Japan}} the last day of trolleybus service was 30 November 2024. The line was the last trolleybus service in Japan.