First of all: Thank you very much for 555 subscribers! :) The Ginza Line is the oldest subway line in Tokyo and in Asia - known as "the first underground railway in the Orient". It extends from Shibuya to Asakusa in Taitō and connects many major residential, commercial, and business districts like Omotesandō, Ginza or Ueno. The section between Asakusa and Ueno was completed on December 30, 1927 and opened by Tokyo Underground Railway (Tōkyō Chika Tetsudō / 東京地下鉄道). Until 1934 the line was extended to Shimbashi. Another subway company - the Tōkyō Rapid Railway (Tōkyō Kōsoku Tetsudō / 東京高速鉄道) - opened the section from Shibuya to Toranomon in 1938. Both subway lines were connected in 1939 at Shimbashi. Both companies merged as the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (TRTA). After the economic boom in the 70s and 80s the Ginza Line got overcrowded. Even after the opening of the Hanzomon Line in 1978-1989 - which is designed as a parallel reliever line - the Ginza Line is still very crowded. Furthermore the trains are limited to 6 cars due to short platforms. As beeing the first metro line of Tokyo, the Ginza Line is located very close to the street level. However the line emerges to the surface only at his western terminus in Shibuya (Ueno Inspection Division is located on surface too, but this section isn't used for passenger traffic). The currently used trains are the 01 series (since 1983, to be retired until 2015) and the new 1000 series (since April 2012). The exterior design of the 1000 series is inspired by the original 1000 series trains from 1927. Stations: 19 Daily ridership: 1,006,102 (2010) Opening: 1927 Owner: Tokyo Metro Depot: Shibuya, Ueno Rolling stock: Tokyo Metro 01 series, Tokyo Metro 1000 series Line length: 14.3 km Track gauge: 1,435 mm Electrification: 600 V DC, third rail Operating speed: 65 km/h Song for this line: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv30LixoG9E ______________ 銀座線(ぎんざせん)は、東京都台東区の浅草駅から渋谷区の渋谷駅までを結ぶ、東京地下鉄(東京メトロ)が運営する鉄道路線。 1927年(昭和2年)に浅草 - 上野間で営業を開始した日本で最初の地下鉄である[1]。当時のポスター[2]では「東洋唯一の地下鉄道」というキャッチコピーが使われ、アジア・オセアニア地域では初めての地下鉄路線である。 平日朝2分間隔、平日夕方2分15秒間隔、日中3分間隔で運行されている。 1000系 - 6両編成1本6両が在籍している。2013年春より量産を開始し、2016年度までに01系をすべて置き換える予定。 01系 - 6両編成38本228両が在籍している。 路線距離(営業キロ):14.3 km(うち地上部 0.3 km) 軌間:1435 mm 駅数:19駅(起終点駅含む) 複線区間:全線 電化区間:全線(直流 600 V、第三軌条方式) 閉塞方式:速度制御式(東京メトロ新CS-ATC) 最高速度:65 km/h 平均速度:34.2 km/h 車両基地:上野検車区、上野検車区渋谷分室 (Source: Wikipedia - sorry that my Japanese is still too bad)