Sunrise Seto

The Sunrise Seto (サンライズ瀬戸, Sanraizu Seto) is an overnight sleeping car train service in Japan operated jointly by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West) since July 1998.[1][2]

Sunrise Seto

285 series EMU on a Sunrise Seto service, 2019
Overview
Service type	Limited express
Status	Operational
Locale	Japan
Predecessor	Seto
First service	10 July 1998
Current operator(s)	JR Central, JR West
Route
Start	Tokyo
End	Takamatsu
Distance travelled	804.7 km (500.0 mi)
Average journey time	approx. 9 hours 30 minutes
Service frequency	1 return working daily
Train number(s)	Westbound: 5031M Eastbound: 5032M
Line(s) used	JR East: JT Tōkaidō Main Line, Tōkaidō Freight Line JR Central: Tōkaidō Main Line JR West:  A  Tōkaidō Main Line,  A   S  Sanyō Main Line,  L  Uno Line,  M  Honshi-Bisan Line JR Shikoku: ■ Honshi-Bisan Line, ■ Yosan Line, ■ Dosan Line
On-board services
Seating arrangements	None
Sleeping arrangements	Private compartments/open-plan sleeping areas
Catering facilities	None
Technical
Rolling stock	285 series EMUs
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	1,500 V DC
Operating speed	130 km/h (80 mph)

Operations

The Sunrise Seto runs daily between Tokyo and Takamatsu in Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, taking about 9 hours 30 minutes for the 804.7 km (500.0 mi) journey.[2] The service operates in conjunction with the Sunrise Izumo service to Izumoshi between Tokyo and Okayama. The combined 14-car train departs from Tokyo, and stops at Yokohama, Atami, Numazu, Fuji, Shizuoka, Hamamatsu (final midnight stop), Himeji (first morning stop), and arrives at Okayama, where the train splits, with the Sunrise Izumo half of the train heading to Izumoshi.[3] Between Okayama and Takamatsu, the 7-car Sunrise Seto train stops at Kojima and Sakaide, before arriving in Takamatsu. The return train departs from Takamatsu, and is coupled with the Sunrise Izumo from Izumoshi at Okayama Station, departing together from there, and arriving at Tokyo Station in the next morning.

There are seasonal extended services which Sunrise Seto trains from Tokyo run beyond Takamatsu, to Kotohira on the Dosan Line. These extended service trains run during particular seasons (Differs each year), and during the holidays.

• 
  A Sunrise Seto & Sunrise Izumo combined formation on the Sanyo Main Line, May 2012
• 
  Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto units being uncoupled at Okayama Station, March 2013
• 
  Destination indicator for a Tokyo-bound service

Station list

Line	Station		Distance (km)		Time[3]		Location
	Name	Japanese	Between stations	From Tokyo	Westbound (-> Takamatsu)	Eastbound (-> Tokyo)	Ward / City	Prefecture / Metropolis
Tōkaidō Main Line	Tokyo	東京	-	0.0	22:00 Departure	07:08 Arrival	Chiyoda	Tokyo
	Yokohama	横浜	28.8	28.8	22:23 Arrival 22:24 Departure	06:44 Arrival 06:45 Departure	Yokohama	Kanagawa
	Atami	熱海	75.8	104.6	23:21 Arrival 23:23 Departure	05:43 Arrival 05:45 Departure	Atami	Shizuoka
	Numazu	沼津	21.6	126.2	23:39 Arrival 23:40 Departure	05:26 Arrival 05:27 Departure	Numazu
	Fuji	富士	20.0	146.2	23:53 Arrival 23:54 Departure	05:09 Arrival 05:10 Departure	Fuji
	Shizuoka	静岡	34.0	180.2	00:19 Arrival 00:20 Departure	04:38 Arrival 04:40 Departure	Shizuoka
	Hamamatsu	浜松	76.9	257.1	01:11 Arrival 01:12 Departure	↑ (Brief stop)	Hamamatsu
	Toyohashi	豊橋	36.5	293.6	(Brief stop)		Toyohashi	Aichi
	Nagoya	名古屋	72.4	366.0	↓	↑ (Brief stop)	Nagoya
	Gifu	岐阜	30.3	396.3	↓ (Brief stop)	↑	Gifu	Gifu
	Maibara	米原	49.6	445.9	(Brief stop)		Maibara	Shiga
	Ōsaka	大阪	110.5	556.4	↓ (Brief stop)	00:32 Arrival 00:34 Departure	Osaka	Osaka
	Sannomiya	三ノ宮	30.6	587.0	↓	00:12 Arrival 00:13 Departure	Kobe	Hyogo
Sanyō Main Line	Himeji	姫路	57.3	644.3	05:25 Arrival 05:26 Departure	23:33 Arrival 23:35 Departure	Himeji
	Okayama	岡山	88.6	732.9	06:27 Arrival (Decouple and separate from Sunrise Izumo) 06:31 Departure	22:23 Arrival (Couple with Sunrise Izumo) 22:34 Departure	Okayama	Okayama
Uno Line, Honshi-Bisan Line
	Kojima	児島	27.8	760.7	06:52 Arrival 06:53 Departure	22:00 Arrival 22:01 Departure	Kurashiki
Yosan Line	Sakaide	坂出	22.7	783.4	07:09 Arrival 07:10 Departure	21:44 Arrival 21:45 Departure	Sakaide	Kagawa
	Takamatsu	高松	21.3	804.7	07:27 Arrival	21:26 Departure	Takamatsu
Seasonal extended services (from Tokyo) to Kotohira
Yosan Line	Takamatsu	高松	-	804.7	07:54 Departure	/	Takamatsu	Kagawa
	Tadotsu	多度津	32.7	837.4	08:33 Arrival 08:35 Departure		Tadotsu
Dosan Line
	Zentsūji	善通寺	6.0	843.4	08:43 Arrival 08:45 Departure		Zentsuji
	Kotohira	琴平	5.3	848.7	08:52 Arrival		Kotohira

• Trains make brief stops for several reasons, here being crew changes at JR region boundaries. Passengers cannot board or get off the train when it makes such stops.
• Regularly, only eastbound services will operate between Atami and Yokohama via the Tōkaidō Freight Line, where trains enter the line at Odawara and exit at Chigasaki back to the Tōkaidō Main Line.

Formation

Trains are formed of dedicated 7-car 285 series Sunrise Express electric multiple units (EMUs) owned by both JR Central and JR West. They are formed as shown below, with cars numbered 8 to 14 in the down (westbound) direction, with car 14 at the Tokyo end, and 1 to 7 in the up (Tokyo-bound) direction, with car 7 at the Tokyo end.[1]

Car No.	1/8	2/9	3/10	4/11	5/12	6/13	7/14
Numbering	KuHaNe 285	SaHaNe 285	MoHaNe 285	SaRoHaNe 285	MoHaNe 285	SaHaNe 285	KuHaNe 285
Accommodation	B single berths	B single berths	B solo berths	Single DX berths	B single berths Nobinobi floor space	B single berths	B single berths
	B single/ single-twin berths	B single/ single-twin berths		Sunrise twin berths		B single/ single-twin berths	B single/ single-twin berths
Facilities			Mini saloon area, vending machine, shower		Vending machine

• Car 2/9 has a wheelchair-accessible compartment
• Each car has toilet facilities at one end.[4]
• Smoking is permitted in car 6/13, and some compartments in car 4/11.[3]

Accommodation, Ticketing and Facilities

The Sunrise Express services consist of six types of accommodation. There are five types of berths: A Single Deluxe, B Sunrise Twin (2-person use), B Single Twin (1 or 2-person use), B Single and B Solo. There is also a carpeted sleeping space called the Nobinobi sleeping area.

To ride the train, several fares are required. All passengers require a basic fare ticket (乗車券, Jousha ken) and a limited express ticket (特急券, Tokkyu ken) based on the distance traveled. On top of these, those wishing to travel in a private room must also pay for a berth ticket (寝台券, Shindai ken), while those traveling in the Nobinobi sleeping area must pay a small seat reservation charge (座席指定料金, zaseki shitei ryoukin) in order to reserve an individual sleeping space.

The berth and seat reservation charges are fixed, regardless of where the journey starts and ends.

Accommodation Price Table[5][6]

Person	Accommodation	Price
1-person use berth	A Single Deluxe	¥13980
	B Single Twin	¥9600
	B Single	¥7700
	B Solo	¥6600
2-people use berths	B Sunrise Twin	¥15400 for two people
	B Single Twin	¥15000 for two people
1-person use seating	Nobinobi sleeping area	¥530 seat reservation charge (+200 for peak seasons) (-200 for off seasons)

For example, a passenger traveling one-way from Tokyo to Okayama in regular season would have to pay for a basic fare ticket and a limited express ticket between Tokyo and Okayama (¥10670 and ¥3300, respectively) before adding on either the Nobinobi reservation charge or the berth ticket.

Tickets can be purchased up to one month before departure at a JR Midori no Madoguchi in Japan, or online through the JR West Seat Reservation website. Holders of the Japan Rail Pass can reserve a Nobinobi space for free, or reserve a berth by paying the limited express and berth charges.

A shower is located in cars 3 and 10. Passengers using the A Single Deluxe compartments are provided with a free shower card to use the showers on the train, while other passengers have to pay ¥330 for a shower card if they desire to use the showers. Lounges are also located in cars 3 and 10. Drink vending machines are available in cars 3, 5, 10 and 12.

• 
  "Single Deluxe" compartment
• 
  Car 4/11 corridor
• 
  Single berth
• 
  Single-twin berth
• 
  Nobinobi open-plan sleeping area (car 5/12, upper floor)
• 
  Nobinobi open-plan sleeping area (car 5/12, lower floor)
• 
  Shower cubicle (car 3/10)
• 
  Mini lounge area (car 3/10)

History

Locomotive-hauled Seto service, October 1995

The Sunrise Seto services were introduced together with the Sunrise Izumo on 10 July 1998.[7] Previously, the Seto operated as a separate "Blue train" service connecting Tokyo with Takamatsu.[8] The Sunrise Izumo was intended to attract more passengers to train transportation by introducing newly designed trains and by reducing the journey time.

Ridership on overnight trains in Japan continues to decline, and from March 2009, the Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto became the only overnight sleeping car trains to operate west of Tokyo via the Tokaido Line.[9]

See also

• Sunrise Izumo
• Seto (train), the blue train predecessor to the Sunrise Seto
• List of named passenger trains of Japan

References

1. ＪＲ新幹線＆特急列車ファイル [JR Shinkansen & Limited Express Train File]. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. 2008. p. 124. ISBN 978-4-330-00608-6.
2. Haraguchi, Takayuki (2009). Encyclopedia of JR's Railway Cars: ＪＲ全車輌. Japan: Sekai Bunka. p. 34. ISBN 978-4-418-09905-4.
3. JR時刻表 [JR Timetable]. Japan: Kotsu Shimbunsha. March 2013. p. 144. EAN 4910053110334.
4. JR電車編成表 2013夏 [JR EMU Formations - Summer 2013]. Japan: JRR. May 2013. p. 122. ISBN 978-4-330-37313-3.
5. "寝台券" [Berth ticket]. jr-odekake.net (in Japanese). West Japan Railway Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
6. "指定席券" [Reserved Seat Ticket]. jr-odekake.net (in Japanese). West Japan Railway Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
7. こだわりの新幹線＆特急列車ガイド [In-depth Shinkansen & Limited Express Guide]. Japan: Ikaros Publishing. August 2000. pp. 194–195. ISBN 4-87149-284-2.
8. 最新特急大カタログ [Modern Limited Express Catalogue]. Japan: JTB. November 1992. p. 110.
9. Ogano, Minoru (March 2011). 新幹線・特急大図鑑2011 [Shinkansen & Limited Express Directory 2011]. Japan: JTB Publishing. p. 112. ISBN 978-4-533-08193-4.

External links

• JR West Sunrise Izumo / Sunrise Seto (in Japanese)