Toei Subway

This article is about the subway system operating under the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. For the subway system operating under the Tokyo Metro Co., see Tokyo Metro. For the whole subway network in Tokyo, see Tokyo subway.

Not to be confused with Toei Company.

Toei Subway
A Toei 12-000 series train at Kiba Depot
Overview
Native name	都営地下鉄
Locale	Tokyo, Japan
Transit type	Rapid transit
Number of lines	4
Number of stations	106
Daily ridership	2.85 million (FY2014)
Website	Toei
Operation
Began operation	4 December 1960 (4 December 1960)
Operator(s)	Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation
Technical
System length	109.0 km (67.7 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) (Asakusa and Ōedo lines) 1,372 mm (4 ft 6 in) (Shinjuku line) 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) (Mita line)
Electrification	Overhead line, 1,500 V DC
System map Toei Subway lines

The Toei Subway (Japanese: 都営地下鉄; lit. 'metropolis-operated subway') is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation under the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Ordinance on Underground High-Speed Trains. The Toei Subway lines were originally licensed to the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (the predecessor of Tokyo Metro) but were constructed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government following transfers of the licenses for each line in 1958.

It is the one of Tokyo's two subway operators, with an average daily ridership of 2.85 million; the other operator, the Tokyo Metro, carries approximately 6.52 million passengers per day, as of 2023. The subway has run at a financial loss for most of its history due to high construction expenses, particularly for the Oedo Line. However, it reported its first net profit of ¥3.13bn ($26.9 mil) in FY2006.

Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway form completely separate networks. While users of prepaid rail passes can freely interchange between the two networks, regular ticket holders must purchase a second ticket, or a special transfer ticket, to change from a Toei line to a Tokyo Metro line and vice versa. The sole exceptions are on the segment of the Toei Mita Line between Meguro and Shirokane-Takanawa, where the platforms are shared with the Tokyo Metro Namboku Line, and at Kudanshita on the Shinjuku Line, where the platform is shared with the Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line. At these stations, it is possible to change between the networks without passing through a ticket gate. It is one of only two rapid transit systems operating on 3 track gauges, the other being the Barcelona Metro, Spain, using narrow, standard and broad gauge.

History

In 1920, Tokyo City, the administrative predecessor of today’s 23 special wards, announced its first formal subway development proposal through Tokyo City Notification No. 2 of 1920 (大正9年東京市告示第2号), designating seven routes. Consistent with the city’s broader policy of public ownership and operation of urban transportation, the network was intended to be constructed and managed municipally. However, the Great Kantō Earthquake struck on September 1, 1923, inflicting catastrophic damage on central Tokyo and altering the city’s urban and transportation planning priorities.

In 1925, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued Ministry of Home Affairs Notification No. 56 of 1925 (大正14年内務省告示第56号), which formally designated five routes. Under this framework, Tokyo City obtained operating licenses for four of the five proposed subway lines. However, burdened by substantial public debt in the aftermath of earthquake reconstruction, the city faced strong opposition from both the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Finance. As a result, Tokyo City was unable to secure final approval to commence construction, effectively halting its municipal subway plans.

At the time, the only subway line, now known as the Ginza Line, was constructed and operated separately by two private companies, the Tokyo Underground Railway and the Tokyo Rapid Railway, with through services between the two operators.

After the outbreak of World War II, the Japanese government integrated these two companies in 1941 to form the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (TRTA), commonly known as Eidan, which later became the predecessor of today's Tokyo Metro.

Postwar construction

Overcrowding on a Toei trolleybus, 1955

In Tokyo during the 1950s, post–World War II economic expansion led to rapid population growth and a sharp increase in road traffic. As a result, the effectiveness of existing public transport infrastructure, such as the Tokyo Toden (tram) system, steadily declined due to chronic road congestion, while the existing Teito Rapid Transit Authority subway network alone was unable to keep pace with rising transportation demand.

In 1954, the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly adopted a resolution to construct a public subway system in addition to the network operated by the Teito Rapid Transit Authority. In accordance with urban planning directives, the Tokyo Metropolitan government Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation and Keikyu corporation obtained a license from the Teito Rapid Transit Authority to build its first line between Kuramae and Magome, and began construction of the line as part of the Toei Subway system in 1958.

Since the Toei Subway began operations on the Asakusa Line between Asakusabashi and Oshiage in 1960, with through services to the Keisei Line, the system has expanded steadily, with the opening of the Mita Line in December 1968, the Shinjuku Line in December 1978, and the Ōedo Line in December 1991. The Mita Line was extended between Meguro and Mita stations, and the Ōedo Line entered full operation.

Lines

The Toei Subway is made up of four lines operating on 109.0 kilometers (67.7 mi) of route.

Name	Color	Icon	No.	Route	Stations	Length km (mi)	Opened	Last extension	Daily ridership (FY2024)	Gauge
Asakusa	Rose		1	Nishi-magome – Oshiage	20	18.3 (11.4)	1960	1968	1,457,778	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Mita	Blue		6	Meguro – Nishi-takashimadaira	27	26.5 (16.5)	1968	2000	1,292,710	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Shinjuku	Lime		10	Shinjuku – Moto-Yawata	21	23.5 (14.6)	1978	1989	1,480,760	1,372 mm (4 ft 6 in)
Ōedo	Magenta		12	Hikarigaoka – Tochōmae via Tochōmae, Roppongi and Ryōgoku	38	40.7 (25.3)	1991	2000	1,777,914	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Total					106	109.0 (67.7)			5,281,532

Through services to other lines

The different gauges of the Toei lines arose in part due to the need to accommodate through services with private suburban railway lines. Through services currently in regular operation include:

Line	Through Lines
A Asakusa	KK Keikyū Kurihama Line and KK Keikyū Airport Line both via the KK Keikyū Main Line (Sengakuji to Haneda Airport Terminal 1·2 or Misakiguchi)
	KS Keisei Oshiage Line, KS Keisei Main Line, KS Keisei Narita Airport Line, HS Hokusō Line, KS Keisei Higashi-Narita Line and SR Shibayama Railway (Oshiage to Narita Airport Terminal 1, Imba Nihon-idai or Shibayama-Chiyoda)
I Mita	MG Meguro Line (Meguro to Hiyoshi), then SH Tōkyū Shin-Yokohama Line (Hiyoshi to Shin-Yokohama), then Sōtetsu Shin-Yokohama Line (Shin-Yokohama to Nishiya), then Sōtetsu Main Line (Nishiya to Futamata-gawa to Ebina) or Sōtetsu Izumino Line (Futamata-gawa to Shōnandai)
S Shinjuku	KO Keiō New Line and KO Keio Sagamihara Line both via the KO Keiō Line (Shinjuku to Hashimoto or Takaosanguchi)

• Mita Line shares tracks of the section from Meguro to Shirokane-takanawa with Tokyo Metro Namboku Line, 2.3 kilometres (1.4 mi).

Revenue and ridership

According to the company, an average of 2.34 million people used the company's four subway routes each day in 2008. The company made a profit of ¥12.2 billion in 2009.

JFY2023 Toei Subway Line Revenue and Ridership

Line	Revenue (in million ¥)	Expenses (in million ¥)	Net profit/(loss) (in million ¥)	Revenue/day (in million ¥)	Passengers/day	Operating ratio
A Asakusa	32,777	24,111	8,666	80.996	683,003	74
I Mita	33,256	26,954	6,302	77.935	606,811	81
S Shinjuku	37,770	31,521	6,249	93.375	704,235	83
E Ōedo	53,294	56,498	(3,203)	102.764	836,179	106

Note: All financial figures are in million yen.

Branding

Icons of four lines, as the system consists of four lines, compared with Tokyo Metro’s nine.

Apart from its own logo, a stylized ginkgo leaf used as the symbol of the Tokyo Metropolis, Toei Subway shares a design language in common with Tokyo Metro. Lines are indicated by a letter in Futura Bold on a white background inside a roundel in the line color, with signs indicating stations adding the station number as well. Line colors and letter-designations are complementary with Tokyo Metro's, with none overlapping (e.g., the Mita Line's letter-designation is “I”, rather than “M”, which is used by the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line).

Informational signage is also designed identically, with platform-level station placards differing only in the placement of the bands in the line color: Toei Subway has two thin bands at the top and bottom, while Tokyo Metro has one wider band at the bottom (or, in the case of long, narrow placards, in a continuous band extending to the left and right along the wall itself).

Stations

See also: List of Toei Subway stations

There are a total of 99 unique stations (i.e., counting stations served by multiple lines only once) on the Toei Subway network, or 106 total stations if each station on each line counts as one station. Almost all stations are located within the 23 special wards, with many located in areas not served by the complementary Tokyo Metro network.

• 
  Underground passage stairs at Toei Subway Iidabashi Station, equipped with wire-frame lighting.
• 
  The platform at Akabanebashi Station features glass blocks and tiles made in Italy embedded in the walls.

Rolling stock

Main article: Toei Subway rolling stock

Current vehicles

• Asakusa Line – 5500 series and E5000 series (electric locomotives)
• Mita Line – 6300 series and 6500 series
• Shinjuku Line – 10-300 series
• Oedo Line – 12-000 series and 12-600 series

• 
  5500 series
• 
  6300 series
• 
  6500 series
• 
  10-300 series
• 
  12-000 series
• 
  12-600 series
• 
  E5000 series

Former vehicles

• Asakusa Line – 5000 series, 5200 series and 5300 series
• Mita Line – 6000 series and 10-000 series
• Shinjuku Line – 10-000 series and 10-300R series

• 
  5000 series
• 
  5200 series
• 
  5300 series
• 
  6000 series
• 
  10-000 series
• 
  10-300R series

See also

• List of Toei Subway stations
• Tokyo Metro
• List of Tokyo Metro stations
• List of urban rail systems in Japan
• List of metro systems

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)
• Official website (in English)