Hibiya Line

The line's origins lie in the prewar subway planning of the 1920s. In 1925 a route was outlined under Ministry of Home Affairs Notification No. 56 as one of five planned subway lines — then designated "Line 2" — running underground for about 16.1 km between Meguro and Minami-Senju. Tokyo City obtained route licences but was refused construction approval because of its heavy public debt, and no further work followed; in 1941 the city's subway licences were transferred to the newly established Teito Rapid Transit Authority (TRTA, the Eidan).

After the Second World War the plan was revised. In December 1946 the War Damage Reconstruction Board reissued the Line 2 plan, and the TRTA amended its business licence accordingly in 1949. Acting on a 1957 recommendation of the Urban Transportation Council, the Authority resolved on 18 May 1957 to build the planned Line 2 — the Hibiya Line — together with the planned Line 4 (now part of the Marunouchi Line). The basic plan was to link Naka-Meguro in the southwest with Kita-Koshigaya in the northeast; the full northeastern extension was never built, because the parallel Tōbu Railway was instead quadruple-tracked to add capacity.

The Hibiya Line was the fourth subway line built in Tokyo, after the Ginza, Marunouchi and Toei Asakusa lines. Construction began in 1959, and the line opened in stages. The first section, Minami-Senju to Naka-Okachimachi (3.7 km), opened on 28 March 1961. On 31 May 1962 the Kita-Senju–Minami-Senju (2.1 km) and Naka-Okachimachi–Ningyōchō (2.5 km) sections opened, and through service began with the Tōbu Isesaki Line as far as Kita-Koshigaya. Ningyōchō to Higashi-Ginza (3.0 km) followed on 28 February 1963.

The southwestern half opened during 1964: Kasumigaseki to Ebisu (6.0 km) on 25 March and Ebisu to Naka-Meguro (1.0 km) on 22 July. The final central segment, between Higashi-Ginza and Kasumigaseki (1.9 km), opened on 29 August 1964, completing the through line just weeks before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Through service with the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line, as far as Hiyoshi, began the same day — a notable success for the TRTA, since the rival Toei Asakusa Line, also meant to be ready for the Games, remained unfinished throughout them.

The Hibiya Line was among the lines struck in the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack on 20 March, when it suffered some of the heaviest casualties on the network and was suspended for the whole day. On 8 March 2000 a Hibiya Line train derailed near Naka-Meguro Station and was struck by an oncoming train; five passengers were killed — the only fatal accident to passengers during the Eidan era — and dozens more were injured. The line, its stations and rolling stock passed to Tokyo Metro when the Teito Rapid Transit Authority was privatised on 1 April 2004.

Through service with the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line ended on 16 March 2013; from the same day the through-running area on the Tōbu side was extended over the Tōbu Nikkō Line to Minami-Kurihashi. New 20-metre, four-door, seven-car Tokyo Metro 13000 series trains entered full revenue service from 25 March 2017. On 6 June 2020 a new intermediate station, Toranomon Hills, opened between Kamiyachō and Kasumigaseki — the line's first new station in 56 years, since August 1964 — and the reserved-seat "TH Liner" service began the same day.

• 192516 May: a route licence is obtained; under Ministry of Home Affairs Notification No. 56 the line is planned as 'Line 2', a roughly 16.1 km subway between Meguro and Minami-Senju.
• 195718 May: the Teito Rapid Transit Authority resolves to build the planned Line 2 (the Hibiya Line) and the planned Line 4.
• 19591 May: construction work on the line begins.
• 196128 March: the first section, Minami-Senju–Naka-Okachimachi (3.7 km), opens.
• 196231 May: Kita-Senju–Minami-Senju (2.1 km) and Naka-Okachimachi–Ningyōchō (2.5 km) open; through service with the Tōbu Isesaki Line begins as far as Kita-Koshigaya.
• 196328 February: Ningyōchō–Higashi-Ginza (3.0 km) opens.
• 196425 March: Kasumigaseki–Ebisu (6.0 km) opens.
• 196422 July: Ebisu–Naka-Meguro (1.0 km) opens.
• 196429 August: the final segment, Higashi-Ginza–Kasumigaseki (1.9 km), opens, completing the whole line just before the Tokyo Olympics; through service with the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line begins as far as Hiyoshi.
• 199520 March: the Tokyo subway sarin attack; the Hibiya Line suffers the heaviest casualties on the Eidan network and is suspended for the whole day.
• 20008 March: a train derails near Naka-Meguro Station and is struck by a second train; five passengers are killed — the only fatal accident to passengers in the Eidan era.
• 20041 April: the Teito Rapid Transit Authority is privatised and becomes Tokyo Metro; the line and its assets pass to the new company.
• 201316 March: through service with the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line ends; the same day the Tōbu through-running area is extended over the Tōbu Nikkō Line to Minami-Kurihashi.
• 201725 March: 20-metre, four-door, seven-car Tokyo Metro 13000 series trains enter full revenue service.
• 20206 June: Toranomon Hills Station opens between Kamiyachō and Kasumigaseki — the line's first new station in 56 years, since August 1964; the reserved-seat 'TH Liner' service also begins.