Kintetsu Namba Line

Kintetsu's predecessor lines had long terminated on the eastern edge of central Osaka at Uehommachi (now Ōsaka-Uehommachi), the terminus of both the Osaka Line, opened by the Osaka Electric Railway in stages from 1914, and the Nara Line. Reaching the busy Namba commercial district closer to the city centre required a new underground link, and on 23 February 1959 Kintetsu obtained a licence to build a line between Tsuruhashi and Namba. A dedicated construction bureau was set up on 1 March 1965, and work on the underground station at Uehommachi began on 9 September 1965, followed by a formal groundbreaking ceremony on 9 October 1965.

Construction then proceeded station by station beneath the streets of central Osaka. Work on the intermediate Nippombashi station started on 25 November 1966, and excavation of the Namba terminus began on 25 April 1967. The whole alignment was driven underground along Sennichimae-dōri, a major east–west thoroughfare, allowing the railway to thread into the dense built-up district without disturbing the surface streets above.

The final stages came in early 1970. Track-laying began on 25 January 1970 and test running followed on 24 February 1970. On 1 March 1970 all Nara Line trains were switched to the new underground platforms at Uehommachi in preparation for the extension, and on 15 March 1970 the line between Kintetsu-Namba and Uehommachi opened to traffic. A few days later, on 21 March 1970, some Osaka Line limited expresses also began running through onto the new line. The opening was timed to coincide with Expo '70, the world exposition held that year in nearby Suita, which drew enormous crowds to the Osaka region.

Because it had been expensive to build a railway in tunnel beneath a major city street, Kintetsu levied a special surcharge on fares over the line to help recover the construction cost. This added fare was introduced on 8 January 1979. Once the building costs had been fully recouped, the surcharge was abolished on 20 November 1991, and fares over the Namba Line reverted to the ordinary scale.

The line's reach was transformed in 2009. On 20 March 2009 the neighbouring Hanshin Electric Railway opened its own Hanshin Namba Line between Nishi-Kujō and Ōsaka-Namba, meeting the Kintetsu line at its western terminus, and the two operators began through services. On the same day Kintetsu renamed its two principal stations — Kintetsu-Namba became Ōsaka-Namba, and Uehommachi became Ōsaka-Uehommachi — to reflect the new interconnection. The change linked Kintetsu and Hanshin into a single cross-Osaka corridor.

Today the Namba Line is one of the busiest short stretches on the Kintetsu network, carrying frequent commuter and limited-express services even though it is only two kilometres long. Through Ōsaka-Namba it anchors direct trains that run all the way between Kōbe-Sannomiya on the Hanshin side and Kintetsu-Nara, knitting together Kōbe, central Osaka and the Nara region. Operationally inseparable from the Nara Line, it remains the indispensable underground link that brings Kintetsu's services into the commercial heart of Osaka.

• 195923 February: Kintetsu obtains a licence to build a line between Tsuruhashi and Namba.
• 19651 March: a dedicated construction bureau is established. 9 September: construction of the underground station at Uehommachi begins; 9 October: groundbreaking ceremony.
• 196625 November: construction of the intermediate Nippombashi station begins.
• 196725 April: excavation of the Namba terminus begins.
• 1969On the connecting Nara Line, the voltage is raised to 1,500 V DC, preparing it for through-running onto the new Namba Line.
• 197025 January: track-laying begins. 24 February: test running. 1 March: all Nara Line trains switch to the underground platforms at Uehommachi.
• 197015 March: the line between Kintetsu-Namba and Uehommachi opens to traffic, timed to coincide with Expo '70 in Suita.
• 197021 March: some Osaka Line limited expresses begin running through onto the new line.
• 19798 January: a special surcharge fare is introduced to help recover the line's construction cost.
• 199120 November: with construction costs fully recovered, the surcharge fare on the Namba Line is abolished.
• 200920 March: through services with the new Hanshin Namba Line begin; Kintetsu-Namba is renamed Ōsaka-Namba and Uehommachi is renamed Ōsaka-Uehommachi.