Shikoku Railway Company
# Shikoku Railway Company

The Shikoku Railway Company (四国旅客鉄道株式会社, Shikoku Ryokaku Tetsudō Kabushiki-gaisha), commonly known as JR Shikoku (JR四国, Jei-āru Shikoku), is the smallest of the seven constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates 855.2 kilometres (531.4 mi) of intercity and local rail services in the four prefectures on the island of Shikoku in Japan. The company has its headquarters in Takamatsu, Kagawa.

## Lines

In 1988 JR Shikoku, unlike other JR companies, discontinued the classification of its rail lines as either main, secondary, or branch lines. Prior to the change, the Dosan, Kōtoku, Tokushima, and Yosan Lines had all been main lines.

Each line is color-coded and labeled with a letter, in conjunction with which a number is assigned to each station on the line. For example, Naruto Station on the Naruto Line (labeled N) is numbered N10. Although this method is now widely used by rail companies, especially metro systems in Japan, JR Shikoku was the first JR company to adopt it.

| Line color | Abbreviation | Line | Line | Japanese | Termini |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Main Lines ||||||
| | (none) | Honshi Bisan Line | Honshi Bisan Line | 本四備讃線 | Kojima – Utazu |
| | Y | Yosan Line | Main Line | 予讃線 | Takamatsu – Matsuyama |
| | U | Yosan Line | Main Line | 予讃線 | Matsuyama – Mukaibara |
| | U | Yosan Line | Branch Line (New Line) | 予讃線 | Mukaibara – Uchiko |
| | U | Uchiko Line | Uchiko Line | 内子線 | Uchiko – Niiya |
| | U | Yosan Line | Branch Line (New Line) | 予讃線 | Niiya – Iyo-Ōzu |
| | U | Yosan Line | Main Line | 予讃線 | Iyo-Ōzu – Uwajima |
| | S | Yosan Line | Main Line (Old Line) | 予讃線 | Mukaibara – Iyo-Ōzu |
| | T | Kōtoku Line | Kōtoku Line | 高徳線 | Takamatsu – Tokushima |
| | D | Dosan Line | Dosan Line | 土讃線 | Tadotsu – Kōchi |
| | K | Dosan Line | Dosan Line | 土讃線 | Kōchi – Kubokawa |
| | B | Tokushima Line | Tokushima Line | 徳島線 | Tsukuda – Sako |
| Other Lines ||||||
| | M | Mugi Line | Mugi Line | 牟岐線 | Tokushima – Kaifu |
| | N | Naruto Line | Naruto Line | 鳴門線 | Ikenotani – Naruto |
| | G | Yodo Line | Yodo Line | 予土線 | Wakai – Kita-Uwajima |

* ↑ Part of the Seto-Ōhashi Line connecting Okayama to Shikoku via the Great Seto Bridge.

## Train services

JR Shikoku provides intercity transportation with its limited express services, connecting major cities on the island of Shikoku with Okayama on Honshū. The company also operates local trains.

Major named trains of JR Shikoku :

| Type | Name | Endpoints and major intermediate stations (Stations not owned by JR Shikoku in parentheses) | Train type |
| - | - | - | - |
| Limited Express | Ashizuri | Kōchi – (Nakamura) – (Sukumo) | 2000 series DMU, 2700 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Ishizuchi | Takamatsu – Matsuyama | 8000 series EMU, 8600 series EMU |
| Limited Express | Muroto | Tokushima – Anan – Kaifu | KiHa 185 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Nanpū | (Okayama) – Awa-Ikeda – Kōchi | 2700 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Uwakai | Matsuyama – Uwajima | 2000 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Uzushio | (Okayama) – Takamatsu – Tokushima | KiHa 185 series DMU, 2600 series DMU, 2700 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Shimanto | Takamatsu – Awa-Ikeda – Kōchi | 2700 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Shiokaze | (Okayama) – Matsuyama | 8000 series EMU, 8600 series EMU |
| Limited Express | Tsurugisan | Tokushima – Anabuki – Awa-Ikeda | KiHa 185 series DMU |
| Limited Express | Sunrise Seto | (Tokyo) – (Okayama) – Takamatsu | 285 series EMU sleeper (operated by JR West and JR Central) |
| Rapid | Marine Liner | (Okayama) – Takamatsu | 5000 series EMU (operated by JR Shikoku) 223-5000 series EMU (operated by JR West) |

* 185 series DMU used for limited express services
* 2000 series DMU used for limited express services
* 5000 series EMU used for Marine Liner rapid services
* 8000 series EMU used for limited express services
