Sagano Scenic Line

The route the line follows is far older than the tourist operation. It began as part of the main line of the Kyoto Railway (京都鉄道), a private company whose Saga (now Saga-Arashiyama) to Sonobe section opened on 15 August 1899 to connect Kyoto with the northern part of Kyoto Prefecture, the old province of Tanba. To avoid the steep grade that the Oinosaka pass would have demanded, the builders chose the relatively level course through the Hozu River gorge, with its winding alignment and narrow tunnels. The Kyoto Railway was nationalised under the Railway Nationalization Act on 1 August 1907, and its line was absorbed into the government railways.

In 1909 the Kyoto–Sonobe section was named the Kyoto Line, and on 1 March 1912, when the through route from Kyoto to Izumi-imaichi was completed, the Kyoto Line and adjoining sections were incorporated into the San'in Main Line. The gorge route then served as the eastern end of the San'in Main Line for decades. Umahori Station opened on 20 July 1935 and Hozukyō Station on 15 April 1936, and at the 1987 break-up and privatisation of the Japanese National Railways the section passed to JR West.

The line's modern role was created by a realignment. To raise capacity and prepare for electrification, JR West built a new, shorter, straighter double-tracked section of the San'in Main Line between Saga and Umahori, and on 5 March 1989 traffic switched to this new line, abandoning the original winding route of 1899 through the gorge. Because the old alignment commanded fine views, there were strong calls—led by Kyoto Prefecture—to revive it as a tourist asset, and JR West decided to develop it for sightseeing. The Sagano Scenic Railway was established as a wholly owned JR West subsidiary on 14 November 1990; it applied for a railway business licence on 2 November and the licence was granted on 30 November 1990.

The Sagano Scenic Line opened on 27 April 1991, running "Torokko" (open-car) trains over the former San'in line between Torokko Saga and Torokko Kameoka. JR West supplied second-hand equipment: a DE10 diesel locomotive (No. 1104) hauling open-sided carriages converted from Toki 25000 freight gondolas. Under Japan's railway categories JR West owns the track as a Category 1 operator while the Sagano Scenic Railway runs the trains as a Category 2 operator, and the whole route remains part of JR West's San'in Main Line. The venture had been expected to draw around 220,000 passengers a year, but proved far more popular: it carried more than 690,000 in its first year, roughly three times the forecast, and a fifth carriage nicknamed "The Rich" was added in 1998.

The line grew into a major attraction over the following decades. A new station building at Torokko Kameoka was completed in 1992 and one at Torokko Saga in 1997, and from 1992 staff planted cherry and pine trees along the route and staged costumed performances. Combined with the traditional Hozu River boat ride down to Arashiyama, the train became a fixture of Kyoto sightseeing; annual ridership topped one million for the first time in the year to March 2014, and in 2015 the line carried about 1.23 million passengers, roughly a third of them from outside Japan. From December 2015 some winter services have run as a "stove train," with cast-iron stoves installed in two of the cars.

The line has also weathered setbacks and won recognition. In September 2013 Typhoon No. 18 and heavy rain brought down trees and washed earth onto the track, suspending the whole line; Torokko Hozukyō Station, whose connecting suspension bridge was damaged, stayed closed until the bridge was restored in June 2014. The collapse of inbound foreign tourism during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020, which had accounted for the bulk of riders, cut ridership to about 460,000 in fiscal 2020—roughly 36 percent of the peak—and pushed the company into operating losses, prompting in April 2022 its first fare rise since opening other than consumption-tax adjustments; ridership recovered to around 1.1 million in fiscal 2023. Meanwhile the line's structures earned heritage status: its tunnels and bridges were named a Civil Engineering Heritage of Japan in 2019, and the Kiyotaki Tunnel and other structures were registered as Tangible Cultural Properties in February 2026.

• 189915 August: the Kyoto Railway opens the Saga (now Saga-Arashiyama)–Sonobe section through the Hozu River gorge, the route the Sagano Scenic Line later uses.
• 19071 August: the Kyoto Railway is nationalised under the Railway Nationalization Act; the line becomes part of the government railways.
• 19121 March: on completion of the Kyoto–Izumi-imaichi through route, the Kyoto–Sonobe section (named the Kyoto Line in 1909) and adjoining sections are incorporated into the San'in Main Line.
• 19223 April: a train overturning accident occurs on the Hozugawa bridge on the gorge line.
• 193520 July: Umahori Station opens on the gorge line (the present-day connection for Torokko Kameoka); Hozukyō Station follows on 15 April 1936, the station later reused as Torokko Hozukyō.
• 19871 April: with the break-up and privatisation of Japanese National Railways, the gorge section passes to JR West.
• 19895 March: the San'in Main Line Saga–Umahori section switches to a new double-tracked, electrification-ready line; train service on the winding 1899 gorge line is abolished.
• 1990The Sagano Scenic Railway is established as a wholly owned JR West subsidiary on 14 November; it applies for a railway business licence on 2 November and the licence is granted on 30 November.
• 199127 April: the former San'in line opens as the Sagano Scenic Railway's Sagano Scenic Line, Torokko Saga–Torokko Kameoka, and "Torokko" train operation begins. First-year ridership tops 690,000, about three times the forecast.
• 199819 July: the SK300 open car nicknamed "The Rich" is added to the fleet (a fifth carriage; new station buildings had been completed at Torokko Kameoka in 1992 and Torokko Saga in 1997).
• 201316–18 September: Typhoon No. 18 and heavy rain suspend the whole line; Torokko Hozukyō Station stays closed after its connecting suspension bridge is damaged. Annual ridership exceeds one million for the first time in the year to March 2014.
• 201427 June: the suspension bridge is restored and Torokko Hozukyō Station reopens.
• 2015December: full operation of a winter "stove train," with cast-iron stoves fitted in some cars, begins. In 2015 the line carries about 1.23 million passengers, roughly a third of them foreign visitors.
• 20208 April: amid the COVID-19 pandemic the line is fully suspended (until 12 June). With inbound foreign demand gone, fiscal-2020 ridership falls to about 460,000, roughly 36% of the peak, and the company moves into operating losses.
• 20221 April: the line raises fares for the first time since opening other than consumption-tax adjustments; the flat adult fare becomes 880 yen. Ridership recovers to about 1.1 million in fiscal 2023.
• 202610 February: the Kiyotaki Tunnel and other structures on the line are registered as Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (its tunnels and bridges had been named a Civil Engineering Heritage of Japan in 2019).