51-547: The Tobu Urban Park Line ( 東武アーバンパークライン , Tōbu Ābanpāku-rain ) , formally known as the Tobu Noda Line ( 東武野田線 , Tōbu Noda-sen ) , is a 62.7 km (39.0 mi) long railway line in Saitama and Chiba Prefectures operated by the Japanese private railway company Tobu Railway . It connects the satellite cities of Tokyo, such as Saitama , Kasukabe , Noda , Nagareyama , Matsudo , Kamagaya , Kashiwa , and Funabashi . All trains were initially operated as all-stations "Local" services. Most trains, excluding
102-441: A few from/to train depots, originate or terminate at Kashiwa Station which has a switchback . During the daytime, six trains run per hour. From 26 March 2016, limited-stop "Express" services were introduced on the line. During the daytime off-peak, these run at 30-minute intervals, stopping only at Iwatsuki between Ōmiya and Kasukabe , and all-stations between Kasukabe and Funabashi . The journey time between Omiya and Kasukabe
153-452: A few municipalities to Tokyo in the 1890s/1900s (see below) and several smaller, 20th century changes through cross-prefectural municipal mergers or transfers of neighbourhoods, Saitama had reached its present extent. In the modern reactivation of districts as administrative unit in 1878/79, Saitama was subdivided into originally 18 districts based on the ancient divisions of Musashi, but with only nine (joint) district government offices, and
204-527: A governor ([ken-]chiji) who is directly elected to four-year terms since 1947. The current incumbent is Motohiro Ōno , a former DPFP member of the Diet who was elected in August 2019 with centre-left support (CDP, DPFP, SDP) and 47.9% of the vote against centre-right supported (LDP, Kōmeitō) former baseball player Kenta Aoshima (44.9%) and three other candidates. Also as in all prefectures, prefectural by-laws,
255-461: Is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu . Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (January 1, 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km (1,466 sq mi ). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture to the north, Nagano Prefecture to the west, Yamanashi Prefecture to the southwest, Tokyo to the south, Chiba Prefecture to
306-556: Is bordered by Tokyo , Chiba , Ibaraki , Tochigi , Gunma , Nagano , and Yamanashi Prefectures. It is located central-west of the Kanto region, measuring 103 km from east to west and 52 km from north to south. At 3,797.75 km , it ranks as the ninth-smallest prefecture. The eastern border with Chiba Prefecture is defined by the Edo River . The northern and north-western border lines with Gunma Prefecture are marked by
357-425: Is reduced by 6 minutes compared with all-stations "Local" services. Abbreviations: Trains are formed of 6-car (or 4+2-car) 8000 series EMUs, introduced from 1997. New 6-car 60000 series EMUs were introduced on the line from 15 June 2013, replacing the older 8000 series sets. Eight sets are scheduled to be delivered by the end of fiscal 2013. From 3 March 2012, test running using 10030 series EMUs commenced on
408-414: Is situated in a rich natural environment. The region is very popular among residents of Saitama and neighboring prefectures for short trips, as it is easily accessible via the railroad network. Kobaton ( コバトン ) is the prefectural mascot, a Eurasian collared dove, which is also the prefectural bird. Kobaton was made originally as the mascot of the fifty-ninth annual national athletic meeting held in
459-581: The Edo River . On 1 March 1944, the company merged with the Tobu Railway, and the line became the Tobu Noda Line. 6-car trains were introduced from November 1972. Electrification was commenced in 1929 between Kasukabe and Ōmiya, and while the section from Kashiwa to Funabashi was still unelectrified when the operation of the line was taken over by Tobu in 1944, the remaining section was electrified by 1 March 1947. The Omiya to Kasukabe section
510-700: The Meiji Restoration , after being briefly united with other rural shogunate territories in Musashi under Musashi governors (Musashi chikenji) , many former shogunate/hatamoto territories in Northwestern Musashi became Ōmiya Prefecture (大宮県, Ōmiya-ken ), soon renamed to Urawa (浦和県, -ken ) in 1868/69, with some territories held by other short-lived prefectures ( Iwahana [ ja ] /later mainly Gunma and Nirayama [ ja ] /later mainly Shizuoka, Kanagawa and Tokyo). In
561-573: The North Tama and North Toshima districts of Tokyo. In the creation of modern cities, towns and villages in 1889, these districts were subdivided into originally 40 towns and 368 villages . The first city in Saitama was only established in 1922 when Kawagoe Town from Iruma District became Kawagoe City . The prefectural capital, Urawa in North Adachi, remained a town until 1934. After
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#1732791480124612-787: The Tone River and the Kanagawa River and the drainage divides of the Arakawa River and Kanagawa River. The southwestern border is defined by the drainage divides of the Arakawa River, Tama River , and Fuefuki River . The eastern section of the southern border line, however, does not overlap with any geological feature. The topography of Saitama Prefecture is largely divided by the Hachiōji Tectonic Line, which runs through Kodama , Ogawa , and Hannō , into
663-455: The replacement of -han with -ken , the associated territorial consolidation (removal of feudal era ex-/enclaves) and first wave of prefectural mergers in 1871/72, Oshi and Iwatsuki prefectures were merged into Urawa; after consolidation, it consisted of the entire Saitama District and Northern parts of Adachi and Katsushika (But at that time, "major and minor districts", 大区, daiku and 小区, shōku , served as administrative subdivisions) and
714-613: The 19th century is part of Musashi Province in the Ritsuryō (or ryō-system; ritsu stands for the penal code, ryō for the administrative code) Imperial administration of antiquity (see Provinces of Japan and the 5 (go) capital area provinces (ki)/7 (shichi) circuits (dō) system) which was nominally revived in the Meiji restoration but has lost much of its administrative function since the Middle Ages. Saitama District (Saitama-gun)
765-618: The 2022 election) in the House of Councillors . The latest prefecture-wide election was the House of Councillors by-election in October 2019 to fill the seat vacated by Motohiro Ōno; it was won by the previous governor Kiyoshi Ueda who has a centre-left background (DPJ member of the House of Representatives for Saitama's 4th district before his term as governor), but without full-scale party backing and without any other major party-backed candidate in
816-409: The 8000 series sets were finished in a livery of "royal beige" and "international orange". From May 1974, sets were repainted into a simpler all-over livery of "sage cream". From 1985, sets were repainted into a new livery of "jasmine white" with dark and light blue bodyside stripes. One six-car set, 8108, was repainted into the original beige and orange livery between October 2004 and June 2005 to mark
867-499: The 80000 series sets. The line first opened as the Chiba Prefectural Railway Noda Line ( 千葉県営鉄道野田線 , Chiba Ken'ei Tetsudō Noda-sen ) on 9 May 1911, from Kashiwa to Nodamachi (now Nodashi), a distance of 14.7 kilometres (9 miles 10 chains ) using steam haulage. In 1923, the line was privatized and the operator was named Hokusō Railway ( 北総鉄道 , Hokusō Tetsudō ) (separate from
918-693: The 90th anniversary of the Tojo Line. This unit was subsequently returned to standard livery following overhaul in July 2005. In August 2012, six-car set 8111, preserved in running order by the Tobu Museum , was repainted into its original "royal beige" and "international orange" livery for a series of special event runs. In March 2014, to mark the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Tobu Tojo Line, four-car set 81111, based at Shinrinkoen Depot,
969-672: The Alna Kōki (now Alna Sharyō) factory in Osaka and Tsuha Sharyō factory in Nishiarai, Tokyo. In May 1977, the first eight-car 8000 series set (8173) was delivered for use on the Tojo Line . October 1979 saw the last two digits of individual car running numbers exceed 99, resulting in some cars receiving five-digit (8xxxx) running numbers. The last two sets built, 81120 and 8580, were delivered in 1983. The fleet changes between 1963, when
1020-545: The Great Shōwa mergers of the 1950s, the number of municipalities in Saitama had shrunk to 95, including 23 cities by then. The Great Heisei mergers of the 2000s pushed the number below 70. After World War II , as Tokyo expanded rapidly and modern transportation allowed longer commutes, the lack of available land in Tokyo led to the rapid development of Saitama Prefecture, where the population has nearly tripled since 1960. Most of
1071-538: The Greater Tokyo Area, offering transfers to and from Shinkansen high-speed lines. The Musashino serves as a freight bypass line as well as a passenger line. Chichibu Railway the northwestern, Seibu Railway the southwestern, Tobu Railway the midwestern and the eastern, the New Shuttle and Saitama Railway the southeastern parts of the prefecture respectively. The Tsukuba Express line crosses
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#17327914801241122-682: The Kantō Mount Range, including the Hiki Hills and Sayama Hills. The latter are mainly surrounded by alluvial flood plains. In the southeastern portion of the prefecture, the Ōmiya Plateau stands in a southeastward direction, sandwiched by the Furutone River to the east and the Arakawa River to the west. The western side of the prefecture belongs to the Kantō Mountain Range with Chichibu Basin located in its center. The area to
1173-470: The Saitama area. At the end of the early modern Edo period , large parts of present-day Saitama were part of the shogunate domain ( baku-ryō ) or the often subsumed holdings of smaller vassals ( hatamoto -ryō) around Edo, major areas were part of the fiefdoms ( -han ) Kawagoe (ruled by Matsui/ Matsudaira , fudai ), Oshi (Okudaira-Matsudaira, fudai ) and Iwatsuki ( Ōoka , fudai ); few territories were held by domains seated in other provinces. In
1224-556: The Tobu Urban Park Line. Tōbu Railway announced on 16 April 2024 that 25 new 80000 series 5-car EMUs are scheduled to be introduced on the line from 2025 onwards, replacing all remaining 8000 and 10000 series trains operated on the Urban Park Line. In addition, the 18 60000 series sets are expected to be shortened to 5 cars per trainset with one surplus car from each set being modified and incorporated into 18 of
1275-464: The Western part of present-day Saitama. In 1873, Iruma was merged with Gunma (capital: Takasaki Town, Gunma District) to become Kumagaya (capital: Kumagaya Town, Ōsato District). But Kumagaya was split up again in 1876: The area of Kōzuke province came back as a second Gunma prefecture, and the territories in Musashi province/former Iruma prefecture were merged into Saitama. Except for the transfer of
1326-458: The budget and the approval of important prefectural administrative appointments such as the vice-governors or members of the public safety commission, are the prerogative of the assembly which is elected directly to four-year terms on an independent electoral cycle. That may or may not be synchronized with the gubernatorial term; currently, it is not, as it is still part of the unified local election cycle (Saitama gubernatorial elections already left
1377-466: The cities in the prefecture are closely connected to downtown Tokyo by metropolitan rail, and operate largely as residential and commercial suburbs of Tokyo. In 2001, Urawa City was merged with Ōmiya City and Yono City to create Saitama City ( Saitama-shi ; but unlike the district or the prefecture written with Kana ) as the new enlarged capital. It became the prefecture's first (and so far only) designated major city in 2003. Saitama Prefecture
1428-530: The east of the prefecture, are largely disused following the introduction of motorised land transport. Traces of water transport are found on the Tone River , which forms the border between Saitama and Gunma Prefecture, and on the Arakawa River , which includes a tourist attraction in Nagatoro . See Mass media in Saitama Prefecture . Like all prefectural administrations, Saitama's is headed by
1479-442: The first sets were built, and 1983, when construction ended, are shown below. The fleet changes from 2005, when withdrawals commenced, are shown below. (Including 800/850 series 3-car sets) Life-extension refurbishment began in 1986, and sets treated from 1987 received redesigned cab ends based on the 6050 series design. Sets refurbished from 1997 onward received HID headlights and LED external destination indicators, replacing
1530-406: The line's maximum speed was raised from 90 km/h to 100 km/h at the same time. From 17 March 2012, station numbering was introduced on all Tobu lines, with Noda Line stations receiving numbers prefixed with the letters "TD". From 1 April 2014, the line was rebranded the Tobu Urban Park Line ( 東武アーバンパークライン ) . Saitama Prefecture Saitama Prefecture ( 埼玉県 , Saitama-ken )
1581-483: The line, with the first reliveried set entering revenue service from 20 April 2013. From 21 April 2017, new Tobu 500 series three-car EMUs operate on Urban Park Liner limited express services on the line. Services operate between Asakusa in Tokyo (Tobu Skytree Line) and Omiya and Nodashi on the Tobu Urban Park Line, with trains dividing and joining at Kasukabe . The 500 series trains are also used on Urban Park Liner services operating between Omiya and Unga on
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1632-688: The most numerous EMU type operated by any private railway operator in Japan. The Isesaki Line fleet based at Tatebayashi Depot consists of two-car trainsets. This fleet includes three-car 800 and 850 series trains converted from 8000 series units, which are also based at Tatebayashi Depot. Both types are modified for local driver-only operation services north of Tatebayashi . The Kameido Line and Daishi Line fleet based at Kasukabe Depot consists of two-car trainsets modified for driver-only operation. Tobu Sano Line services are operated by 800 and 850 series three-car driver-only-operation sets introduced from
1683-410: The number of districts was formally merged down to nine in 1896/97: North Adachi , Iruma , Hiki , Chichibu , Kodama , Ōsato , North Saitama , South Saitama , and North Katsushika . Niikura (also known as Niiza, Shiki or Shiragi) , one of the original 1878/79 modern districts, was first merged into North Adachi in 1896, but a substantial part of its former territory was subsequently transferred to
1734-695: The original roller blind type. 2001 saw the first appearance of two-car sets modified for driver-only-operation. This included the addition of an automated bilingual (Japanese and English) passenger announcement system, internal LED passenger information displays, and external speakers. Some of the remaining unrefurbished sets also received LED destination indicators. From 2004, five eight-car sets were reformed to create pairs of three-car 800 and 850 series driver-only-operation sets for use on Sano and Kiryu Line services. This conversion involved adding new cabs to former MoHa8300 and MoHa8200 intermediate cars. The new sets are formed as follows. When first built,
1785-503: The prefecture in 2004, and was inaugurated as mascot of the prefecture in 2005 with an inauguration ceremony and a letter of appointment from the governor. A wheelchair-using version of Kobaton also exists. Tobu 8000 series The Tobu 8000 series ( 東武8000系 , Tōbu 8000-kei ) is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) commuter train type operated by the private railway operator Tobu Railway in Japan since 1963. A total of 712 vehicles were built between 1963 and 1983, making this
1836-455: The present Hokusō Railway ), and also opened its own line from Funabashi Station to Kashiwa Station, a distance of 19.6 km (12 mi 14 ch). The company gradually extended the line to Ōmiya, and changed its name in 1929 to Sōbu Railway ( 総武鉄道 , Sōbu Tetsudō ) (not to be confused with the present Sōbu Main Line ). The line was completed in 1930 with the completion of the bridge over
1887-481: The race. Saitama Prefecture has a number of sister city relationships with states and a province as listed below (in chronological order). The sports teams listed below are based in Saitama. Most of the popular tourist sites in Saitama are located in the northwestern part of the prefecture, which is known as the Chichibu Region. This region mostly consists of a hilly and moderately mountainous area, and
1938-420: The southeast, and Ibaraki Prefecture to the northeast. Saitama is the capital and largest city of Saitama Prefecture, with other major cities including Kawaguchi , Kawagoe , and Tokorozawa . According to Sendai Kuji Hongi ( Kujiki ), Chichibu was one of 137 provinces during the reign of Emperor Sujin . Chichibu Province was in western Saitama. The area that would become Saitama Prefecture in
1989-507: The southeastern corner of the prefecture. Haneda Airport and Narita International Airport are the closest major civil airports. Commuter helicopter flights from Kawajima to Narita Airport are offered. Honda Airport for general aviation , and the JASDF's Iruma Air Base and Kumagaya Air Base . Rivers and canals, including those developed in the Edo period (17th – 19th centuries) in
2040-987: The start of the revised timetable on 14 June 2008, only refurbished four-car driver-only-operation sets are used on the Tobu Ogose Line . These are also stationed in Shinrinkōen , and five sets are required every day. The first 8000 series appeared in November 1963 as four-car sets. These were joined from December 1964 by two-car sets (formed MoHa8500 + KuHa8600). Between 1971 and 1972, 14 pairs of additional intermediate cars (SaHa8700 + MoHa8800) were built and inserted into four-car sets 8101 to 8114 to lengthen them to six cars. 8000 series trains built up to this point were not equipped with air-conditioning, but from June 1972, three 6-car air-conditioned sets (8156 to 8158) were delivered. The originally non-fitted sets were also modified with air-conditioning from October 1973 until 1983 at
2091-612: The start of the revised timetable on 18 March 2006. The Kiryu Line and Koizumi Line fleet based at Tatebayashi Depot consists of two-car trainsets modified for driver-only operation. The Utsunomiya Line fleet based at Shin-Tochigi Depot consists of four-car trainsets modified for driver-only operation. The Urban Park Line fleet based at Nanakōdai Depot consists of six-car trainsets. The Tōjō Line fleet based at Shinrinkōen Depot consists of 11 four-car trainsets. These are used in local driver-only operation services north of Ogawamachi , where four sets are required every day. From
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2142-638: The towns and villages in each district : Radial transportation to and from Tokyo dominates transportation in the prefecture. Circular routes were constructed as bypasses to avoid congestion in central Tokyo. The Jōban , Kan-etsu , Shuto , Tōhoku , and Tokyo-Gaikan expressways form parts of the nationwide expressway network. National highway Routes 4 , 16 , and 17 are important routes in Kantō region. Ōmiya Station in Saitama City forms East Japan Railway Company 's northern hub station in
2193-641: The unified cycle in 1949). In the last round in April 2019 , the LDP maintained its outright majority with 48 of the 93 seats in the assembly. As in most prefectures, the Saitama assembly was established legally in 1878 and first convened 1879. In the National Diet , Saitama's directly elected delegation consists of 15 members of the House of Representatives and currently seven (four per class, but only raised from three in 2019, so it will only grow to eight after
2244-562: The west of the basin features high peaks such as Mount Sanpō (2,483 m; 三宝山, Sanpō-yama according to the GSI, but often read Sanpō-zan ) on the Western border with Nagano, Saitama's highest mountain, and Mount Kōbushi (2,475 m), in which the Arakawa River has its source. Most of the land is contained in Chichibu Tama Kai National Park . The area to east of the basin consists of relatively low mountains. These are
2295-461: The western mountain area and the eastern lowland area. The altitude, highest on the western side, gradually lowers eastward from mountain ranges to hills to plateaus to lowlands. The eastern lowlands and plateaus occupy 67.3% of the area. The eastern side, part of the Kantō Plain , can be further divided into nine separate expanses of hills and ten plateaus. The former occupy small areas neighboring
2346-668: Was double-tracked between 1957 and 2011, the Nodashi to Umesato section in 2011, the Unga to Sakasai section between 1960 and 1991, and the Mutsumi to Funabashi section between 1964 and 1999. Six-car 8000 series EMUs were phased in from 1997, displaced by new 30000 series EMUs introduced on the Tobu Isesaki Line . The last remaining 5070 series EMUs were withdrawn from the start of the revised timetable on 19 October 2004, and
2397-531: Was one of Musashi's 21 ritsuryō districts . In the fifth year of the Keiun era (708), deposits of copper were reported to have been found in the Chichibu District of what is now Saitama Prefecture. The Saitama area was historically known as a fertile agricultural region which produced much of the food for the Kantō region. During the Edo period , many fudai daimyōs ruled small domains within
2448-834: Was renamed to Saitama . The government of the prefecture was to be set up in Iwatsuki Town, Saitama District in November 1871 by the Dajōkan ordinance to set up the prefecture, but ultimately remained in Urawa's previous prefectural government seat in Urawa Town in Adachi District. Kawagoe Prefecture was consolidated with other territories into Iruma Prefecture [ ja ] (入間県, Iruma-ken ; government seat unchanged from Kawagoe domain/prefecture: Kawagoe Town, Iruma District) which consisted of 13 districts of Musashi in
2499-566: Was repainted from its "royal beige" and "international orange" livery into all-over "sage cream" livery in August 2016. From 16 February 2017, two-car set 8568, used on the Tobu Kameido Line and Tobu Daishi Line , received the green and "jasmine white" livery carried experimentally by one 7860 series train in the 1950s. From 13 July 2017, two-car set 8575, used on the Tobu Kameido Line and Tobu Daishi Line, received
2550-448: Was repainted into the all-over "sage cream" livery carried by sets from the 1970s. This set operates on Tobu Tojo Line services between Ogawamachi and Yorii , and on Tobu Ogose Line services between Sakado and Ogose . In November 2014, four-car set 81107, based at Shinrinkoen Depot, was repainted into the original "royal beige" and "international orange" livery. From 28 November 2015, four-car set 8198, based at Shinrinkoen Depot,
2601-441: Was repainted into the dark blue with yellow stripe livery carried by 54 series and 53 series EMUs used on Flying Tojo limited express services on the Tobu Tojo Line during the 1950s. From 23 March 2016, two-car set 8577, used on the Tobu Kameido Line and Tobu Daishi Line , received the "international orange" and "medium yellow" livery carried by 7300 and 7800 series trains between 1958 and 1964. Preserved six-car set 8111
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