One of the features in urban railways in Japan is that many companies are in competition to attract passengers. It might be hard to imagine for foreigners, but it is caused by the high-density railway network in the urban areas. It allows the passengers to choose the best route to get to their destinations.
For instance, let's suppose that you live in Himeji City, and need to visit Osaka, which is the business center of the western part of Japan. You can choose from three routes... the Shinkansen, the Sanyo Main Line or Sanyo Electric Railway.
JR West's Sanyo Shinkansen is the fastest transportation from Himeji to Shin-Osaka. It covers 92 km in only 29 minutes. The problem is its high cost. Another problem is that you have to transfer to the Tokaido Main Line at Shin-Osaka to get to Osaka Station.
The second route is JR West's Sanyo Main Line. It takes about one hour from Himeji to Osaka Station without having to transfer. The other good news is that you can use the rapid-service train without an extra charge.
The third route is taking Sanyo Electric Railway. It is a second-tier local private railway company. The Sanyo trains are directly operated into Kobe Rapid Transit and Hanshin Electric Railway, and get to Osaka-Umeda Terminal. It takes more than one hour and a half, a bit slow; however, the Sanyo train is the cheapest transportation from Himeji to Osaka.
To be continued...
For instance, let's suppose that you live in Himeji City, and need to visit Osaka, which is the business center of the western part of Japan. You can choose from three routes... the Shinkansen, the Sanyo Main Line or Sanyo Electric Railway.
JR West's Sanyo Shinkansen is the fastest transportation from Himeji to Shin-Osaka. It covers 92 km in only 29 minutes. The problem is its high cost. Another problem is that you have to transfer to the Tokaido Main Line at Shin-Osaka to get to Osaka Station.
The second route is JR West's Sanyo Main Line. It takes about one hour from Himeji to Osaka Station without having to transfer. The other good news is that you can use the rapid-service train without an extra charge.
The third route is taking Sanyo Electric Railway. It is a second-tier local private railway company. The Sanyo trains are directly operated into Kobe Rapid Transit and Hanshin Electric Railway, and get to Osaka-Umeda Terminal. It takes more than one hour and a half, a bit slow; however, the Sanyo train is the cheapest transportation from Himeji to Osaka.
To be continued...
More information about Sanyo Electric Railway: