After travelling on Kurobe Gorge Railway Main Line, I came to Uozu Station by Toyama Chiho Railway Main Line to transfer to Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line, which was inherited a part of JR West Hokuriku Main Line in Toyama Prefecture between Kurikara Station and Ichiburi Station (more properly between the border with Ishikawa Prefecture, between Kurikara Station and Isurugi Station, and that with Niigata Prefecture, between Etchu-miyazaki Station and Ichiburi Station), by Ainokaze Toyama Railway Company, a mixed enterprise which is established by Toyama Prefecture, municipal organisations along the railway, and private companies, at the same time as the open of Hokuriku Shinkansen in 2015.
I have travelled on this section several times in JR period, but it was first time to do after the business succession.
On that time, I travelled from Uozu Station to Takaoka Station and a521 Seriesset which moved from JR West.
Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line runs in parallel with Toyama Chiho Railway Main Line, on which I had travelled on the day before that day, between Uozu Station and Namerikawa Station. Though the Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line train is operated by up to 4-car set, the platform of the stations is very longer than the train because of the train length of that in the JR period.
The line diverges from the railway of Toyama Chiho Railway Main Line between Namerikawa Station and Mizuhashi Station. Then, as the train coming close to Toyama Station, Toyama Rail Yard was seen on the left of train direction, in which the carriages,such as Class EF81, EF510 electric locomotive, Kiha 120 Series on JR West Takayama Main Line, Ainokaze Toyama Railway 521 Series, and lots of freight train stayed, and the containers unloaded from the freight trains were stored. While stopping Toyama Station, I saw a Shinkansen train "Hakutaka" Departing toward Tokyo Station.
Going over the turnout branching to the yard, the railway of JR West Hokuriku Shinkansen and Toyama Chiho Railway Main Line start to spread in parallel with the railway and the train soon dropped into Toyama Station, whose tracks of Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line (toward Takaoka and Kanazawa) and JR West Takayama Main Line had been elevated soon after the open of Shinkansen and that of Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line (toward Uozu, Kurobe, and Tomari) is under construction.
Going down the elevated section, the railway spread in parallel with Shinaknsen and crossed under that twice, soon before arriving at Kureha Station and between Kosugi Station and Etchu-daimon Station.
After crossing Shogawa River, the train came to Takaoka Station, one of the biggest stations on Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line connecting to JR West Johana Line, Himi Line, and Manyosen tramway and many limited express trains used to stop in the JR period.
My last travel with a local train on this section had been in 2009, the JR period. The variation of the carriages in service became less because of the end of all limited express train operation associated with the open of Shinkansen and business succession of Hokuriku Main Line. However, while watching Toyama Station, currently rebuilding, I felt changes of the times compared with that in my last visiting, which is very impressive.