Shin-Keisei Electric Railway (新京成電鉄) was a railway company that formerly operated in the Tōkatsu area of Chiba Prefecture. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Keisei Electric Railway (京成電鉄).
History
The company was planned under the name Shimōsa Railway (下総鉄道), and it applied under that name for a licence for the Shin-Tsudanuma to Matsudo route. The licence was granted on 8 August 1946. The company was founded on 23 October 1946. The first section, from the first Shin-Tsudanuma station to Yakuendai, opened on 27 December 1947. Takifudō opened on 6 August 1948. Bus operations began in 1949. On 8 January 1949 the line reached Kamagaya Daibutsu. On 17 October 1949 it reached Kamagaya Hatsutomi, now Hatsutomi.
On 21 October 1953 the whole line changed gauge from 1067 mm to 1372 mm. On 1 November 1953 the Maebara to Keisei Tsudanuma section opened, and a second Shin-Tsudanuma station opened. The section between the first Shin-Tsudanuma station and Maebara was abolished at the same time. On 21 April 1955 the Kamagaya Hatsutomi to Matsudo section opened, which completed the whole line as single track. Through trains ran to the Keisei Chiba Line until 31 August 1955. On 30 November 1959 the whole line changed gauge again, from 1372 mm to 1435 mm. In October 1961 the company was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Second Section. On 23 August 1961 a third Shin-Tsudanuma station opened, with the section to Maebara, and the second station was renamed Fujisakidai.
On 15 November 1967 the head office moved from Tsudanuma to Shin-Tsudanuma. On 14 May 1968 Shin-Tsudanuma station moved to its present site, and a link to Keisei Tsudanuma opened. The section from Maebara through Fujisakidai to Keisei Tsudanuma was abolished. In 1971 the 800 series electric cars began service. On 7 February 1975 double track was completed, except for the 1.2 km section between Keisei Tsudanuma and Shin-Tsudanuma. The head office moved to Kunuginama on 8 August 1977. On 1 December 1978 the 8000 series began service, the first air-conditioned cars the company had run. On 7 March 1979 the No. 1 type ATS safety system was installed on the whole line. On 9 March 1979 through running with the Hokuso Development Railway line, now the Hokuso Line, began.
On 1 June 1983 train radio was introduced across the whole line. On 19 March 1984 through running began with the Housing and Urban Development Corporation's Chiba New Town line, now the Hokuso Line. On 26 February 1986 the 8800 series began service. On 5 April 1987 Misaki station was rebuilt with an elevated concourse, and automatic ticket gates were installed there. On 1 November 1987 a train operation management system (TTC) was introduced. On 4 December 1988 a timetable change raised the top speed from 65 km/h to 75 km/h, the first speed increase in 33 years. The Matsudo to Keisei Tsudanuma journey was cut by 5 minutes, from 48 to 43 minutes. On 1 June 1990 Sagami Railway was promoted to the top group of private railways, and this company became the only quasi-large private railway (準大手私鉄) in the Kantō region. On 20 June 1990 all cars became air-conditioned. On 8 July 1992 the new Shin-Kamagaya station opened, and through running with the Hokuso and Housing Corporation lines ended.
On 15 November 1993 the 8900 series began service. On 1 April 1995 a stored-fare system using SK cards was introduced on the line. On 1 April 1996 the top speed was raised from 75 km/h to 85 km/h, and the Matsudo to Keisei Tsudanuma journey was cut by 3 minutes. On 14 October 2000 the shared fare card Pasnet came into use. On 1 March 2002 the company was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange First Section. On 1 October 2003 the bus business was split into three companies, so all car businesses were run by group companies. On 29 May 2005 the N800 series began service. On 10 December 2006 a timetable change resumed 20-minute daytime through services to Chiba-Chūō on the Keisei Chiba Line. On 18 March 2007 the IC card PASMO was introduced, and mutual use with Suica began. On 10 January 2008 Pasnet sales ended, as PASMO spread. On 14 March 2008 Pasnet stopped being used at automatic gates, and from 15 March refunds and transfers to PASMO began.
On 1 April 2009 English automatic announcements began on the 8800 and 8000 series. On 17 July 2010 the 800 series left regular service, and farewell runs were held on 24 and 25 July. On 8 February 2013 all motor cars on the fleet became VVVF inverter controlled. On 23 March 2013 nationwide mutual use of IC cards began on the line. On 30 October 2013 the company formed a business alliance with Seven-Eleven Japan. On 23 February 2014 station numbering was introduced on the line. On 1 June 2014 a new symbol and slogan were adopted, and a corporate colour was set.
On 27 December 2019 the 80000 series began service. On 1 November 2021 the 8000 series ended service. In April 2022 part of the company moved to the Standard Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Digital train radio began on 22 May 2022. On 30 August 2022 the company was delisted from the Standard Market. On 1 September 2022 a simplified share exchange made it a wholly owned subsidiary of Keisei Electric Railway. Digital train radio was fully switched over on 22 April 2023. On 31 October 2023 Keisei's board decided to absorb the company, and a merger contract was signed. On 1 April 2025 the company was merged into Keisei Electric Railway and dissolved, and the Shin-Keisei Line was renamed the Matsudo Line.
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Written by an AI from the line's history on Japanese Wikipedia, nothing else, and checked by a program for dates and numbers that are not in those facts. It can still be wrong. Adapted from Japanese Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0; this text is shared under the same licence.