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Tokyo Metro

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This article is about the subway system operating under the Tokyo Metro Co.. For the subway system operating under the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, see Toei Subway. For the whole subway network in Tokyo, see Tokyo subway. For the metropolitan area of Tokyo, see Greater Tokyo Area.
Tokyo Metro
Overview
Native name東京メトロ
Tōkyō Metoro
OwnerTokyo Metro Co., Ltd.
(public kabushiki gaisha controlled by the Government of Japan (26.71%) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (23.29%); traded as TYO: 9023)
LocaleGreater Tokyo Area, Japan
Transit typeRapid transit
Number of lines9[1]
Number of stations180[1]
Daily ridership6.52 million (FY2023)[2]
WebsiteTokyo Metro
Operation
Began operation1927; 97 years ago (1927) as Tokyo Underground Railway
(1941; 83 years ago (1941) as Teito Rapid Transit Authority; 2004; 20 years ago (2004) under current name)
Operator(s)Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd.
Number of vehicles2,773 cars (2012)[1]
Technical
System length195.1 km (121.2 mi)[1]
Track gauge1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge (Ginza & Marunouchi lines)
Electrification1,500 V DC overhead catenary
600 V DC third rail (Ginza & Marunouchi lines)
Top speed80 km/h (50 mph)
100 km/h (62 mph) (Tōzai Line)
65 km/h (40 mph) (Ginza Line)
75 km/h (47 mph) (Marunouchi Line)
System map


Tokyo Metro lines (Toei and JR lines are shown in faint colours.)

The Tokyo Metro (Japanese: 東京メトロ, Tōkyō Metoro) is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the two subway operators in the city; the other being the Toei Subway, with 2.85 million average daily rides.[2][3]

Organization

The old TRTA logo, a stylized roundel in the shape of an "S" was introduced in 1953, adopted as TRTA's corporate logo in 1960 and used until 2004.
Head office of Tokyo Metro near Ueno Station, one of the first stations of the network

Tokyo Metro is operated by the Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd. (東京地下鉄株式会社, Tōkyō Chikatetsu kabushiki-gaisha), a joint-stock company jointly owned by the Government of Japan and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.

The company, founded as a part of then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's policy of converting statutory corporations into joint-stock companies, replaced the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (帝都高速度交通営団, Teito Kōsokudo Kōtsū Eidan, lit. "Imperial Capital[a] Highspeed Transportation Management Foundation"), commonly known as Eidan or TRTA, on April 1, 2004.[4] TRTA was administered by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and jointly funded by the national and metropolitan governments. It was formed in 1941 as a part-nationalization of the Tokyo Underground Railway and Tokyo Rapid Railway (now both form the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line), although its oldest lines date back to 1927 with the opening of the Tokyo Underground Railway the same year. Upon its establishment, the TRTA's legal form was a "management foundation" (経営財団, keiei zaidan, abbreviated to and hence eidan (営団)), a form of entity established by the government of the wartime cabinet of the Empire of Japan with both public and private sector investments. Private sector investments to the TRTA were prohibited in 1951 when it was converted into an ordinary statutory corporation. In 2024, the company made its initial public offering, raising $2.3 billion in what became Japan's biggest IPO since 2018.[5]

The other major subway operator is Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation (Toei Subway) which is owned solely by the government of Tokyo. Tokyo Metro and Toei trains form completely separate networks, although Tokyo Metro Namboku Line and Toei Mita Line share the same track between Meguro Station and Shirokane-takanawa Station. Users of prepaid rail passes and Suica/Pasmo smart cards can freely interchange between the two networks (as well as other rail companies in the area), but fares are assessed separately for legs on each of these systems and regular ticket holders must purchase a second ticket, or a special transfer ticket, to change from a Toei line to a Tokyo Metro line and vice versa. Though, most Tokyo Metro (and Toei) line offer through service to lines outside of central Tokyo run by other carriers, and this can somewhat complicate the ticketing.

Much effort has been made to make the system accessible to non-Japanese speaking users:

  • Many train stops are announced in both English and Japanese. Announcements also provide connecting line information.
  • Ticket machines can switch between English and Japanese user interfaces.
  • Train stations are signposted in English and Japanese (in kanji and hiragana). There are also numerous signs in Chinese (in simplified characters) and Korean.
  • Train stations are now also consecutively numbered on each color-coded line, allowing even non-English speakers to be able to commute without necessarily knowing the name of the station. For example, Shinjuku Station on the Marunouchi Line is also signposted as M-08 with a red colored circle surrounding it; even if a commuter could not read the English or Japanese station names on signs or maps, they could simply look for the red line and then find the appropriately numbered station on said line. In addition, some trains have interior LCD displays which display station names in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean.

Many stations are also designed to help blind people as railings often have Braille at their base, and raised yellow rubber guide strips are used on flooring throughout the network.

Tokyo Metro stations began accepting contactless (RFID) Pasmo stored value cards in March 2007 to pay fares, and the JR East Suica system is also universally accepted. Both these passes also can be used on surrounding rail systems throughout the area and many rail lines in other areas of Japan. Due to the complexity of the fare systems in Japan, most riders converted to these cards very quickly even though there is an additional charge to issue it.

The Tokyo Metro is extremely punctual and has regular trains arriving 3 to 6 minutes apart most of the day and night. However, it does not run 24 hours a day. While through service with other companies complicates this somewhat, the last train generally starts at midnight and completes its service by 00:45 to 01:00, and the first train generally starts at 05:00.

Tokyo Metro also owns a number of commercial developments which mostly consist of shopping developments at major stations. It also owns the Subway Museum near Kasai Station on the Tokyo Metro Tōzai Line which opened on July 12, 1986, and features a few retired trains which once operated on the Ginza and Marunouchi Lines as well as a maintenance vehicle and some train simulators.

In 2024, Tokyo Metro was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, debuting as the exchange's largest IPO in six years and with a market capitalization of roughly 1 trillion yen.[5] The Government of Japan and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government each sold half of their shares, with the former using the proceeds to repay bonds funding reconstruction after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[6][7]

Overseas affiliates

In 2017, Tokyo Metro opened its affiliate in Hanoi, Vietnam, as part of preparations to be the service operator of Hanoi Metro.[8][9] The Hanoi Metro opened in 2021.[10]

In November 2024, GTS Rail Operations (a consortium comprising Tokyo Metro, Sumitomo Corporation and Go-Ahead Group) was chosen from four bidders to operate the Elizabeth line in London, UK for the period 2025–2032.[11]

Future expansion

Tokyo Metro indicated in its public share offering that it would cease line construction once the Fukutoshin Line was completed.[citation needed] That line was completed in March 2013 with the opening of the connection with the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line at Shibuya Station, allowing through service as far as Motomachi-Chūkagai Station in Yokohama. There are several lines such as the Hanzōmon Line that still have extensions in their official plans, and in the past, these plans have tended to happen, though often over several decades.

In March 2022, Tokyo Metro received permission to add two new extensions to the network. Under these plans, the Yūrakuchō Line would receive a new branch from Toyosu Station to Sumiyoshi Station with three new stops (including one at Toyocho Station on the Tōzai Line) to better serve the Toyosu urban development zone, and the Namboku Line would receive an extension from Shirokane-Takanawa Station to Shinagawa Station, where it would connect with the Tokaido Shinkansen and the under construction Chūō Shinkansen in addition to serving the surrounding business district. Both extensions are expected to open in the 2030s.[12][13][14][15]

Fares

Pasmo and Suica are accepted on the Tokyo Metro, as well as on railway stations operated by other companies. Transfers between Tokyo Metro subway lines and Toei Subway lines are usually not free, but a discount is given when using the Pasmo or Suica cards to transfer between lines.

Traffic

According to the company, an average of 6.33 million people used the company's nine subway routes each day in 2009. The company made a profit of ¥63.5 billion in 2009.[16]

Lines

Altogether, the Tokyo Metro is made up of nine lines operating on 195.1 kilometers (121.2 mi) of route.[1]

List of Tokyo Metro lines

Line
color 		Line
icon 		Line
number 		Name Japanese Route Stations Length Train Length First Opened Last Extension Daily
ridership (2017)[17] 		Gauge Current supply
orange G Line 3 Ginza Line 銀座線 Shibuya to Asakusa 19 14.3 km (8.9 mi) 6 cars 1927 1939 943,606 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) 600 V DC,
third rail
red M Line 4 Marunouchi Line 丸ノ内線 Ogikubo to Ikebukuro 25 24.2 km (15.0 mi) 1954 1962 1,159,898
Mb Marunouchi Line
Branch Line 		丸ノ内線分岐線 Nakano-Sakaue to Hōnanchō 4 3.2 km (2.0 mi) 3 and 6 cars[b] 1962
silver H Line 2 Hibiya Line 日比谷線 Naka-Meguro to Kita-Senju 22 20.3 km (12.6 mi) 7 cars[c] 1961 1964[d] 1,213,492 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) 1,500 V DC,
overhead supply
sky blue T Line 5 Tōzai Line 東西線 Nakano to Nishi-Funabashi 23 30.8 km (19.1 mi) 10 cars 1964 1969 1,642,378
green C Line 9 Chiyoda Line 千代田線 Yoyogi-Uehara to Ayase 20 24.0 km (14.9 mi) 10 cars 1969 1978 1,447,730
Chiyoda Line Branch Line 千代田線分岐線 Ayase to Kita-Ayase 2 2.6 km (1.6 mi) 3 and 10 cars[e] 1979 –
gold Y Line 8 Yūrakuchō Line 有楽町線 Wakōshi to Shin-Kiba 24 28.3 km (17.6 mi) 10 cars 1974 1988 1,124,478
purple Z Line 11 Hanzōmon Line 半蔵門線 Shibuya to Oshiage 14 16.8 km (10.4 mi) 10 cars 1978 2003 1,006,682
teal N Line 7 Namboku Line 南北線 Meguro to Akabane-Iwabuchi 19 21.3 km (13.2 mi) 6 cars and 8 cars 1991 2000 522,736
TBD Namboku Line
Branch Line 		南北線分岐線 Shirokane-Takanawa to Shinagawa 2 2.5 km (1.6 mi) 6 and 8 cars TBD –
brown F Line 13 Fukutoshin Line 副都心線 Wakōshi to Shibuya 16 11.9 km (7.4 mi)A 8 cars (local)
10 cars (local or express) 		1994 2008 362,654
TBD TBD Line 14 Toyozumi Line [citation needed] 豊住線 Toyosu to Sumiyoshi 5 5.2 km (3.2 mi) 10 cars 2025 –
Total (Subway only – not incl. trackage rights portions): 180 195.1 km (121.2 mi)  

N Note: Line numbers are for internal usage only and not listed on subway maps. A Note: Excluding the 8.3 km (5.2 mi) stretch between Wakoshi and Kotake-mukaihara shared with Yurakucho Line.[1]

Through services to other lines

All lines except the Ginza and Marunouchi lines have trains that run through line termini onto tracks owned by other companies.

Line Through Lines
H Hibiya Line TS Tobu Skytree Line

TN Tōbu Nikkō Line (Kita-Senju to Minami-Kurihashi and Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen)

T Tōzai Line JB JR East Chūō-Sōbu Line (Chūō Main Line) (Nakano to Mitaka)
JB JR East Chūō-Sōbu Line (Sōbu Main Line) (Nishi-Funabashi to Tsudanuma)

TR Toyo Rapid Line (Nishi-Funabashi to Tōyō-Katsutadai)

C Chiyoda Line OH Odakyu Odawara Line

OT Odakyu Tama Line (Yoyogi-Uehara to Karakida and Isehara)

JL JR East Jōban Line (Ayase to Toride)
Y Yūrakuchō Line TJ Tōbu Tōjō Line (Wakōshi to Ogawamachi)

Seibu Ikebukuro Line via the Seibu Yūrakuchō Line (Kotake-Mukaihara Station to Hannō)

Z Hanzōmon Line DT Tōkyū Den-en-toshi Line (Shibuya to Chūō-Rinkan)
TS Tobu Skytree Line

TN Tobu Nikkō Line

TI Tobu Isesaki Line (Oshiage to Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen, Minami-Kurihashi and Kuki)

N Namboku Line SR Saitama Rapid Railway Line (Akabane-Iwabuchi to Urawa-Misono)
MG Tōkyū Meguro Line (Meguro to Hiyoshi), then SH Tōkyū Shin-Yokohama Line (Hiyoshi to Shin-Yokohama), then Sōtetsu Shin-Yokohama Line (Shin-Yokohama to Nishiya), then Sōtetsu Main Line (Nishiya to Futamata-gawa to Ebina) or Sōtetsu Izumino Line (Futamata-gawa to Shōnandai)
F Fukutoshin Line Tōbu and Seibu line (same stations served as the Yūrakuchō Line)
TY Tōkyū Tōyoko Line (Shibuya to Hiyoshi** to Yokohama)

through running to Minatomirai Line for Motomachi-Chūkagai

  • Namboku Line shares tracks of the section from Meguro to Shirokane-Takanawa with Toei Mita Line, 2.3 km.
  • Some of the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line express trains, instead of continuing towards Yokohama/Motomachi-Chūkagai, change course at Hiyoshi for Tōkyū Shin-Yokohama Line and share all of the through services downstream just as Tōkyū Meguro Line.

Stations

Further information: List of Tokyo Metro stations
Typical Tokyo Metro station, with half-height platform doors (Ōtemachi on the Hanzōmon Line)

There are a total of 180 unique stations (i.e., counting stations served by multiple lines only once) on the Tokyo Metro network.[1][18] Most stations are located within the 23 special wards and fall inside the Yamanote Line rail loop — some wards such as Setagaya and Ōta have no stations (or only a limited number of stations), as rail service in these areas has historically been provided by the Toei Subway or any of the various major private railways (大手私鉄).

Major interchange stations, connecting three or more Tokyo Metro lines, include the following:

Other major stations provide additional connections to other railway operators such as the Toei Subway, JR East, and the various private railways, including (but not limited to) the following:

Depots

Name Location Current assigned fleet Former assigned fleet Lines served
Ueno Taitō, north of Ueno Station 1000 01, (old) 2000, 1500, 1400, 1300, 100, 1200, 1100, (old) 1000 Ginza
Shibuya Shibuya, west of Shibuya Station None (inspections only) Ginza
Nakano Nakano, south of Nakano-Fujimichō Station 2000, 02, 02-80 (branch line) 300, 400, 500, 100 (branch line), (old) 2000 (branch line) Marunouchi
Koishikawa Bunkyō, between Myōgadani Station and Kōrakuen Station None (inspection and renovation only) Ginza, Marunouchi
Senju Arakawa, north of Minami-Senju Station 13000 03, 3000 Hibiya
Takenotsuka Adachi, south of Takenotsuka Station 13000 03, 3000 Hibiya
Fukagawa Kōtō, south of Tōyōchō Station 05, 07, 15000 5000 Tōzai
Gyōtoku Ichikawa, south of Myōden Station None (inspections only) Tōzai
Ayase Adachi, north of Kita-Ayase Station 16000, 05 (branch line) 6000, 06, 5000 (branch line) Chiyoda, Namboku, Yūrakuchō, Saitama Rapid
Wakō Wakō, north of Wakōshi Station 7000, 10000, 17000 (plan) Fukutoshin, Yūrakuchō
Shin-Kiba Kōtō, southeast of Shin-Kiba Station None (inspection and renovation only) Chiyoda, Hanzōmon, Namboku, Tōzai, Yūrakuchō, and Fukutoshin
Saginuma Kawasaki, inside Saginuma Station 08, 8000, 18000 (plan) Hanzōmon
Ōji Kita, north of Ōji-Kamiya Station 9000 Namboku

Rolling stock

Main article: Tokyo Metro rolling stock

As of 1 April 2016, Tokyo Metro operates a fleet of 2,728 electric multiple unit (EMU) vehicles, the largest fleet for a private railway operator in Japan.[19]

600 V third rail / 1,435 mm gauge lines

A 1000 series train for Shibuya at Shibuya Station on the Ginza Line

1,500 V overhead / 1,067 mm gauge lines

Tozai Line 07 series, 05 series, and 5000 series trains
A 13000 series train (left) with a 08 series train (right)

Trains from other operators are also used on Tokyo Metro lines as a consequence of inter-running services.

Overcrowding

A sign on the Hibiya Line denoting that cars stopping in this area are for women only during morning peak hours

As is common with rail transport in Tokyo, Tokyo Metro trains are severely crowded during peak periods. During the morning peak period, platform attendants (oshiya) are sometimes needed to push riders and their belongings into train cars so that the doors can close. On some Tokyo Metro lines, the first or last car of a train is reserved for women during peak hours.

Network map

Map

See also

References

  1. ^ Teito (帝都) means the "capital of the Empire of Japan" (大日本帝国の首都, Dai Nippon Teikoku no shuto), that is, Tokyo
  2. ^ Through trains to Ikebukuro on the mainline are 6-car trains. Trains terminating at Nakano-Sakaue are 3-car trains.
  3. ^ Hibiya Line trains used 18 m (59 ft 1 in) long 8 car trains with a mixture of 3 or 5 doors per side until March 2017, when 13000 series trainsets were introduced on the Hibiya Line, which utilises longer 20 m (65 ft 7 in) long 7 car trains with 4 doors per side. A 7 car set with 20 m carriages is about the same length of an 8 car set with 18 m carriages.
  4. ^ 56 years after the entire line was opened, the latest intermediate station, Toranomon Hills Station, opened on June 6, 2020.
  5. ^ Through trains to Yoyogi-uehara on the mainline are 10-car trains. Trains terminating at Ayase are 3-car trains.
  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Business Contents - Transportation Services - Business Situation". Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd. Retrieved 2014-06-07.
  2. ^ a b 営業状況 [Business Conditions] (in Japanese). 東京地下鉄株式会社 [Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd.] Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  3. ^ 東京都交通局ホーム - 経営情報 - 交通局の概要 - 都営地下鉄 [Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation Home - Management Information - Overview of the Department of Transportation - Toei Subway] (in Japanese). 東京都交通局 [Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation]. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
  4. ^ "「営団地下鉄」から「東京メトロ」へ" [From "Teito Rapid Transit Authority" to "Tokyo Metro"]. Tokyo Metro Online. 2006-07-08. Archived from the original on 16 May 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Tokyo Metro: Asia's oldest subway goes public". France 24. 23 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Tokyo Metro surges 47.3% on debut in Japan's biggest IPO in 6 years". Kyodo news. 2024-10-30.
  7. ^ "Tokyo Metro shares surge 45% on debut after Japan's largest IPO in six years". CNBC. 2024-10-30.
  8. ^ Vietnam Tokyo Metro set up to run Hanoi's urban railway
  9. ^ History of Tokyo Metro
  10. ^ Burroughs, David (9 November 2021). "Hanoi opens Vietnam's first metro line". IRJ.
  11. ^ Simpson, Jack (2024-11-20). "Tokyo Metro wins contract to operate London's Elizabeth line". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  12. ^ "Tokyo Metro Receives Approval for Yurakucho and Namboku Line Extensions". International Railway Journal. 2024-10-30.
  13. ^ "Tokyo to Build New Waterfront Metro Line". International Railway Journal. 2024-10-30.
  14. ^ "Tokyo Metro eyes extending 2 subway lines to ease congestion". The Asahi Shimbun. 2024-10-30.
  15. ^ "Tokyo Metro's Namboku Line Extension to Connect Shirokane-Takanawa Station and Shinagawa Station Set to Open in the 2030s". Housing Japan. 2024-10-30.
  16. ^ Martin, Alex (August 3, 2010). "Ubiquitous Tokyo subways moving the daily masses". The Japan Times. p. 3.
  17. ^ Tokyo Metro station ridership in 2017 Train Media (sourced from Tokyo Metro) Retrieved May 28, 2018.
  18. ^ 各駅の乗降人員ランキング [Table of Traffic Performance by Station] (in Japanese). 東京地下鉄株式会社 [Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd.] Retrieved 2014-06-07.
  19. ^ 私鉄車両編成表 2016 [Private Railway Rolling Stock Formations - 2016] (in Japanese). Japan: Kotsu Shimbunsha. 25 July 2016. p. 213. ISBN 978-4-330-70116-5.
  20. ^ 東京メトロ13000系・東武70000系"日比谷線直通"新型車両の仕様が明らかに! [Tokyo Metro 13000 series and Tobu 70000 series - Details of new trains for Hibiya Line through services announced]. Mynavi News (in Japanese). Japan: Mynavi Corporation. 17 June 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
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