Kamoshika
| 
 Kamoshika service at Aomori Station, September 2007  | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Limited express | 
| First service | 
1986 (Express) 1997 (Limited express)  | 
| Last service | 2010 | 
| Current operator(s) | JR East | 
| Route | |
| Service frequency | 6 daily | 
| Line used | Ōu Main Line | 
| On-board services | |
| Class(es) | Green + standard | 
| Technical | |
| Rolling stock | 485 series EMU | 
| Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) | 
| Electrification | 20 kV AC | 
| Operating speed | 95 km/h (60 mph) | 
The Kamoshika (かもしか, lit. "Japanese Serow") was a limited express train service in Japan operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) which ran between Akita and Aomori via the Ōu Main Line.[1] The service was discontinued from December 2010.
Service pattern
There were three services in each direction daily, stopping at the following stations.[2]
- Akita
 - Hachirōgata
 - Moritake
 - Higashi-Noshiro
 - Futatsui
 - Takanosu
 - Ikarigaseki
 - Ōdate
 - Ōwani-Onsen
 - Hirosaki
 - Aomori
 
Rolling stock
Trains were normally formed of 3-car 485 series EMUs based at Akita depot, sometimes strengthened to 6 cars during busy seasons. Green car (first class) accommodation was included in Car 1.[1]
History

The Kamoshika was first introduced on 1 November 1986 as an express service operating between Kami-Suwa, Iida, and Nagano. This service was discontinued from the start of the revised timetable on 13 March 1988.[3]
The Kamoshika name was revived from March 1997 as a limited express service operating between Akita and Aomori, replacing the former Tazawa limited express service which ran between Morioka and Aomori via Akita before the Akita Shinkansen was opened.[4]
From the start of the revised timetable on 4 December 2010, the Kamoshika services were discontinued, replaced by Tsugaru services, formerly operating between Hachinohe and Hirosaki, which were rerouted to operate between Aomori and Akita.[5]
See also
References
- 1 2 JR新幹線&特急列車ファイル [JR Shinkansen & Limited Express Train File]. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. 2008. p. 80. ISBN 978-4-330-00608-6.
 - ↑ JR Timetable, March 2010 issue, p.100
 - ↑ 列車名鑑1995 [Train Name Directory 1995]. Japan: Railway Journal. August 1995. p. 124.
 - ↑ 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. ISBN 4-87149-284-2.
 - ↑ "12月4日ダイヤ改正後の青森地区列車運転体系" [ Operating pattern of Aomori area trains following 4 December timetable revision]. Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine. Vol. 39 no. 320. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. December 2010. pp. 24–25.
 
External links
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kamoshika (train). | 
- JR East 485 series "Kamoshika" (Japanese)
 
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