Saturday 10 January 2015

Boat Tour in the Water City

EMU Kita-Osaka Kyuko 8000 series arrives at Yodoyabashi Station on the Subway Midosuji Line
 
Osaka, also known as the water city, has many bridges crossing rivers. In the Edo Period (1603-1868), there were more than 200 bridges in the city. Osaka was the center of the water transportation system on the Yodo and the other rivers at that time.

Today, water transportation in Osaka has declined. We can't see what it used to be... but wait a minute! Let's join the boat tour. The rivers still have some traces of the past. When I visited Osaka with my family last year, we joined "the boat tour guided by a Rakugo storyteller (traditional Japanese comedian)". It was exciting, as the Rakugo storyteller included jokes to give his explanation a lighthearted tone.

Time has changed. Currently, the main transportation system in Osaka is railways. Specifically, the subway network in the downtown area is well developed. To embark on the boat tour, we took the subway Midosuji Line operated by Osaka Municipal Transportation Bureau, and got off at Namba Station. The Midosuji Line was opened in 1933 as the first subway route in Osaka City. Its operating length is 24.5 km. The track is 1,435 mm-size gauge and double. The electric system is 750 V DC the third rail.

Trains on the Midosuji Line are directly operated onto the Kita-Osaka Kyuko Line, therefore, we can also see the trains from the Kita-Osaka Kyuko, such as the EMU 8000 series on the Midosuji Line.

 
Boat tour in Osaka City

More information about Osaka Municipal Transportation Bueau:
More information about the Kita-Osaka Kyuko Line: