Kawaguchiko Line

The Fujikyuko Line as a whole grew out of two horse-drawn tramways built to carry pilgrims and visitors from the Chūō Line railhead at Ōtsuki toward Yoshida (now Fujiyoshida), long a base for climbing Mount Fuji. The Tsuru Horse Tramway opened a 762 mm line in 1900 and the Fuji Horse Tramway a 610 mm line in 1903; the two merged in 1921, and the operation was taken over by the Fuji Electric Railway (富士山麓電気鉄道), founded in 1926. That company replaced the tramway with a new 1,067 mm electric railway from Ōtsuki to Fujiyoshida, opened on 19 June 1929 and electrified from the outset — the present-day Ōtsuki Line. The Kawaguchiko Line was added more than two decades later as an extension of this electric railway beyond Fujiyoshida toward the lake.

On 24 August 1950 the Fuji Electric Railway opened the extension from Fujiyoshida to Kawaguchiko, the section that constitutes the Kawaguchiko Line. The Japanese Wikipedia article records the opening length as 3.1 km, noting that it was shortened by 0.1 km to the present 3.0 km in April 1975; the line's infobox and the basic-data summary give the current figure of 3.0 km. The new terminus at Kawaguchiko brought the railway to the shore of Lake Kawaguchi, the most accessible of the Fuji Five Lakes, and completed the through route that climbs from Ōtsuki (358 m) over Mt. Fuji Station to Kawaguchiko (857 m).

On 30 May 1960 the operating company changed its name from Fuji Electric Railway to Fuji Kyuko (Fujikyuko). The English Wikipedia article dates this renaming to 25 May 1960; following the project's preference for the Japanese source, the 30 May date is used here. A second station appeared on the short Kawaguchiko Line on 1 December 1961, when Highland Station — later renamed Fujikyu-Highland Station — opened to serve the amusement park beside the line. Through express services also reached the lake: from 14 April 1962 the express Kawaguchi ran between Shinjuku and Kawaguchiko, a service that continued until it was discontinued on 1 November 1986.

The line's later development followed the broader shift from freight and pilgrimage traffic to tourism. Wagon-load freight on the railway was discontinued on 1 April 1978, and parcels traffic ended in 1984. Highland Station was renamed Fujikyu-Highland Station on 11 January 1981. On 1 July 2011 the line's pivotal interchange, Fujiyoshida Station, was renamed Mt. Fuji Station, and station numbering was introduced across the whole route, with the Kawaguchiko Line carrying numbers FJ16 (Mt. Fuji), FJ17 (Fujikyu-Highland) and FJ18 (Kawaguchiko). From 26 July 2014 the JR East Narita Express began running through to Kawaguchiko, and on 14 March 2015 the line introduced the Suica IC card.

The most recent changes have strengthened the line's role as a direct gateway from the capital to Mount Fuji. On 16 March 2019 the through limited express Fuji Excursion, running from the JR Chūō Line, began daily service to Kawaguchiko, and the line's maximum speed was raised from 60 to 70 km/h. On 1 April 2022 Fuji Kyuko split off its railway business, and operation of the line passed to its subsidiary Fujisan Yamanashi Railway, although the Fujikyuko Line name was kept for passengers. Today local trains run roughly every half hour over the whole Ōtsuki–Kawaguchiko route, supplemented by the Fujisan Tokkyu, Fujisan View Express and Fuji Excursion limited expresses, and the Kawaguchiko Line carries sightseers the last few kilometres to the lakeside, with Mount Fuji frequently in view from the train.

• 190021 September: the Tsuru Horse Tramway, a predecessor of the Fujikyuko Line, opens a 762 mm gauge line (Shimoyoshida–Kagosaka Pass).
• 192919 June: the Fuji Electric Railway opens the 1,067 mm electric line from Ōtsuki to Fujiyoshida (23.6 km), electrified from the outset — the present Ōtsuki Line, parent of the Kawaguchiko extension.
• 195024 August: the Fuji Electric Railway opens the Fujiyoshida–Kawaguchiko extension — the Kawaguchiko Line. JA gives the opening length as 3.1 km (shortened by 0.1 km to 3.0 km in April 1975).
• 196030 May: the operating company is renamed from Fuji Electric Railway to Fuji Kyuko (Fujikyuko). EN dates the renaming 25 May; the JA date is used per JA-deference.
• 19611 December: Highland Station (later Fujikyu-Highland Station, FJ17) opens on the Kawaguchiko Line.
• 196214 April: the express Kawaguchi begins running between Shinjuku and Kawaguchiko.
• 19781 April: wagon-load freight service on the line is discontinued.
• 198111 January: Highland Station is renamed Fujikyu-Highland Station (and Kureji Station to Kotobuki).
• 19861 November: the express Kawaguchi between Shinjuku and Kawaguchiko is discontinued.
• 20111 July: Fujiyoshida Station, the junction between the two sub-lines, is renamed Mt. Fuji Station and route-wide station numbering is introduced (Kawaguchiko Line FJ16–FJ18).
• 201426 July: the JR East Narita Express begins through service to Kawaguchiko.
• 201514 March: the Suica IC card is introduced on the line.
• 201916 March: the through limited express Fuji Excursion (from the JR Chūō Line) begins daily service to Kawaguchiko; the line's maximum speed is raised from 60 to 70 km/h.
• 20221 April: Fuji Kyuko splits off its railway business; operation of the line passes to its subsidiary Fujisan Yamanashi Railway, with the Fujikyuko Line name retained for passengers.