Fuji (train)

Fuji (富士) is a sleeper train operating between Tokyo and Ōita, Japan.

Route

Fuji uses the Tōkaidō Main Line, Sanyō Main Line and Nippo Main Line. It is operated by the West Japan Railway Company on the island of Honshū, and by the Kyushu Railway Company on the island of Kyūshū.

The train is coupled with the Hayabusa sleeper between Tokyo and Moji Station. Hayabusa travels farther west, serving Fukuoka and Kumamoto.

The 1,240km Tokyo-Ōita run takes just over seventeen hours, leaving Tokyo at 6:03 pm and arriving in Ōita at 11:17 am. The return service leaves Ōita at 4:48 pm and arrives at Tokyo at 9:58 am.[1]

History

Fuji pre-World War II

Fuji began as an intercity daytime service in 1912, although the train did not have a name until 1929. It was one of two long-distance services on the Tōkaidō/Sanyō corridor. The other train on the route, named Sakura, was aimed at middle-class travelers, while Fuji had higher-class rooms, dining cars serving Western food and a "Momoyama" observation car. Fuji and Sakura were the first named trains in Japan.

Fuji services originally operated between Tokyo and Shimonoseki Station. Connecting ferries were available from Shimonoseki to Pusan, Korea, from which passengers could connect to train services bound for China, Russia and even Europe. In 1942, service was extended to Nagasaki, from which ferries were available to Shanghai.

Fuji services were suspended in 1944 due to Japan's deteriorating situation in World War II.

Fuji following World War II

The Fuji name was briefly used on a Shinjuku-Kawaguchiko service in 1950, but did not return to the Tōkaidō corridor until 1961, when Fuji service resumed between Tokyo and Kobe.

After the Tōkaidō Shinkansen opened in 1964, Fuji became a Tokyo-Ōita sleeper service. Between 1965 and 1980, the service was extended to Kagoshima, becoming the longest train service (1,574.2km) in Japanese history: the Tokyo-Kagoshima run took over 24 hours. From 1980 to 1997, Fuji operated between Tokyo and Miyazaki.