Yamanote Line

Carrying over four million passengers every day, the Yamanote Line (山手線) is in many respects the heart of Tokyo’s train network. Instantly recognizable by its signature yellow-green color (officially “Uguisu-iro”), the 35-kilometer line loops central Tokyo, connecting 30 stations including the capital’s major transportation hubs.

For visitors, it is worth paying a premium to stay at a hotel within walking distance of a station on the Yamanote Line—while everyday commuters might flit from overground to underground to save a few minutes, if you are neither familiar with the complicated train network nor speak Japanese, you are often better off taking a slightly longer but simpler route. One of the line’s greatest strengths is its simplicity: unlike most other lines which feature “rapid,” “express,” or “commuter express” variations, every train on the Yamanote Line stops at every one of its 30 stations.

The line’s newest addition, Takanawa Gateway Station (located between Shinagawa and Tamachi), serves as the center of the “Takanawa Gateway City” development. This massive project has transformed the former rail yard into a futuristic hub of office towers, luxury residences, and green spaces, creating a significant new focal point for international business and tourism in Tokyo.

Yamanote Line Overview Map — The Yamanote Line (dotted green line on the map) circles the capital, stopping at many of the main stations

History of the Yamanote Line

Prior to 1885, train lines connected Ueno (via Akabane) to Aomori in the north and Shinagawa to the port city of Yokohama (Japan’s first train line), but there was no train line connecting Shinagawa to this northern line. To resolve this, tracks were laid in 1885 connecting Shinagawa to Akabane in the north of Tokyo. It was therefore constructed not as the passenger line it is today, but as a freight train to help carry materials to the northern prefectures of Japan. And because this train line looped in a large ‘C’ shape around the yama-no-te (“foothills”) of Tokyo (where there were fewer people living), the new rail track took the name that we know today.

Yamanote Line in 1925 — A train on the Yamanote Line about to enter Ueno Station. Taken in 1925, the year that the line was connected in a circle.

As Tokyo’s population grew over the years and the Yamanote Line was the natural line to connect the growing hubs, it was expanded to Ueno in 1903 and then connected with other lines such that by 1925, with tracks laid between Ueno and Kanda, it formed the oval circle used by millions today. At the time, it took 1 hour and 12 minutes to make a complete loop. Today, that time has been cut down to roughly 59 minutes—a testimony to the efficiency of the Japanese rail system.