The Hibiya Line: Construction and Through Services

After the war, housing in Tokyo spread into the suburbs. Passengers arriving on private railways at terminals such as Shibuya still had to change trains to reach the city centre. Increasing suburban train capacity did not remove congestion at those interchanges. In 1956, the Urban Transportation Council proposed a new subway network and directions for through services. The Ministry of Transport subsequently coordinated the Teito Rapid Transit Authority, Tobu Railway and Tokyo Kyuko Electric Railway to link Kita-senju and Naka-meguro through the planned Subway Line 2. Tokyu withdrew five earlier route applications and joined the shared operating arrangements.

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The authority began construction on May 1, 1959, dividing the civil engineering works into 39 contract sections. Connections at Kita-senju and Naka-meguro involved Tobu, Japanese National Railways and Tokyu. Much of the underground route consisted of reinforced-concrete box tunnels. Workers also had to deal with buried utilities, groundwater and existing transport facilities. Well-point dewatering and other measures were used near Ueno. In Ginza, work beneath Harumi-dori took place at night until decking could be installed to maintain road traffic. Contracts, protection of existing lines and street traffic management had to be coordinated.

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On March 28, 1961, the 3.7-kilometre section between Minami-senju and Naka-okachimachi opened. The route reached Kita-senju on May 31, 1962, and through services with the Tobu Isesaki Line began. The southwestern sections entered service in stages. When the Ebisu–Naka-meguro section opened on July 22, 1964, trains could run between Naka-meguro and Kasumigaseki, although this part was still separate from the northeastern section.

On August 29, 1964, the gap between Higashi-ginza and Kasumigaseki was closed, completing the 20.3-kilometre route and allowing through services with the Tokyu Toyoko Line. A journey from Kita-senju to Naka-meguro then took about 43 minutes, using four- or six-car formations. Construction progressively joined the underground sections, while existing private railway lines extended the reach of direct services at both ends.

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The initial 3000-series trains had to meet the requirements of both underground sections and suburban surface lines. The Hibiya Line used a 1,067-millimetre track gauge and 1,500-volt overhead power collected by pantographs, a significant change from the authority’s earlier train systems. The 3000 series drew on the technical experience of the Marunouchi Line’s 300-series trains and incorporated automatic train control, or ATC.

Running across company boundaries required compatible track, power and safety arrangements. The three companies coordinated train specifications and operating practices so that trains could work on both underground and suburban routes. The introduction of the 03 series in July 1988 belonged to a later phase of rolling-stock renewal.

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Tokyu rebuilt Naka-meguro Station to connect with the Hibiya Line, expanding it from two platforms and two tracks to two platforms and four tracks. The two central tracks served the Hibiya Line and the outer pair the Toyoko Line. Turnback facilities were added. Rebuilding brought through trains and transferring passengers together at the same station.

Tokyu 100 Years records a joint survey by the three companies in November 1964. Daily passenger movements at Naka-meguro totalled 110,160, including 70,018 transfers involving the Hibiya Line. These figures show the interchange’s importance: trains entered central Tokyo through Naka-meguro, and passenger flows changed accordingly.

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A new timetable introduced on March 16, 2013, made Naka-meguro the terminus for Hibiya Line trains that had previously continued onto the Toyoko Line. Through services in the Tobu direction were extended to Minami-kurihashi, and some evening trains were added. Operating agreements and timetables continued to reshape the reach of services at the line’s two ends.

On June 6, 2020, Toranomon Hills Station opened between Kasumigaseki and Kamiyacho. The Urban Renaissance Agency led the project, with Tokyo Metro commissioned to undertake design and construction. In the 2020 report, design department manager Akiyoshi Suzuki described first building the basement-level structure, then carrying out station fit-out on that level alongside civil engineering work one level below to meet the opening schedule. Pedestrian passages linked the new station with nearby developments and other transport facilities, adding a service point along the existing route.

References: [4] [5]