Asakusa Line — Tokyo subway
Toei’s first line, rose on the map, from Nishi-magome to Oshiage, with more through services than any other.
The Asakusa Line at a glance
The Asakusa Line runs 18.3 km from Nishi-magome in Ota to Oshiage in Sumida, and it is named after the district it passes under. It was the first subway line in Japan to run through onto a private railway, and today it has more through services than any other line in Tokyo: Keikyu, Keisei, Hokuso, Chiba New Town Railway and Shibayama trains all work over it.
Its official number is Line 1, because it was the first line in Tokyo to be planned, in the 1920s, as an underground link between Keikyu and Keisei. It is also the only Tokyo subway line whose through services run on standard gauge; every other line that shares its tracks does so with narrow-gauge railways.
What to watch out for on the Asakusa Line
Every station on the Asakusa Line
20 stations in order with their station numbers. A ringed dot marks a station where you can transfer; the small coloured dots are the other lines there.
Nishi-magome ↔ Oshiage (Skytree)
20 stations
Service hours on the Asakusa Line
| Timetable | First – last departure on the line |
|---|---|
| Weekdays | 05:00 – 00:30 |
| Saturdays, Sundays & holidays | 05:00 – 00:30 |
Departure times come from the operators’ own GTFS timetables (ODPT GTFS Toei-Train-GTFS (version 20261009, valid 2026-03-14..2027-03-12) + TokyoMetro-Train-GTFS (version 20261008, valid 2026-09-19..2027-03-12)). Japan publishes two subway timetables: 平日 weekdays and 土休日 Saturdays, Sundays and national holidays. There is no separate Sunday timetable, and the December 30 – January 3 period runs the holiday timetable. Each station page gives its own first and last train by direction.
How often trains run
| Timetable | Morning peak (08:00) | Midday (12:00) | Evening (21:00) | Measured at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekdays | 2.7 min | 5.3 min | 5.5 min | Higashi-ginza |
| Saturdays, Sundays & holidays | 5 min | 5.3 min | 6.5 min | Higashi-ginza |
Average gap between trains in one direction at the busiest station of the line.
Where you can transfer
| Station | Other lines | Operator |
|---|---|---|
| A08 Mita | IMita | Toei Subway |
| A09 Daimon | EOedo | Toei Subway |
| A10 Shimbashi | GGinza | Tokyo Metro |
| A11 Higashi-ginza | HHibiya | Tokyo Metro |
| A13 Nihombashi | GGinza TTozai | Tokyo Metro |
| A14 Ningyocho | HHibiya | Tokyo Metro |
| A17 Kuramae | EOedo | Toei Subway |
| A18 Asakusa | GGinza | Tokyo Metro |
| A20 Oshiage (Skytree) | ZHanzomon | Tokyo Metro |
A transfer to a line of the other company is a change of railway as well as of platform: your fare is the sum of the two, less the connecting discount. See fares.
Transfers on foot to a differently named station
| From | To | Lines there | On foot (estimated) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ningyocho | Suitengumae | Hanzomon Line | about 7 min |
| Higashi-nihombashi | Bakuro-yokoyama | Shinjuku Line | about 3 min |
These are official transfers recorded by the operators between stations with different names. The walking time is our estimate from the distance between the platforms — no operator publishes transfer walking times.
History
A Line 1 from Shinagawa Yatsuyama through Shimbashi and Kaminarimon to Oshiage appears in a Tokyo City notification of 1920. The patent granted for it was revoked after the 1923 earthquake, since nothing had been built, and in 1941 the various licences that would become this line passed to the Teito Rapid Transit Authority. In the end the metropolitan government built it, its first subway, starting work on 27 August 1956 after years of delay.
The initial 3.2 km from Oshiage to Asakusabashi opened on 4 December 1960, and the line then worked its way south: Higashi-nihombashi in May 1962, Ningyocho that September, Higashi-ginza in February 1963, Shimbashi that December, Daimon in October 1964, Sengakuji in June 1968, when Keikyu through services began, and Nishi-magome on 15 November 1968. It was given the name Asakusa Line on 1 July 1978, having been known until then by its number. The original route would have missed Asakusa altogether; the plan was changed to pick up the Tobu and Ginza Line connections there. A spur to Tokyo Station leaving the line north of Takaracho has been proposed since 2005 and has never been adopted.
Trains and service
Two timetables are published, 平日 for weekdays and 土休日 for Saturdays, Sundays and national holidays, with first trains about 05:00 and last trains about 00:30 and no service overnight. Measured at Higashi-ginza, weekday trains come roughly every three minutes in the morning peak and every five to six minutes at midday and in the evening; the Saturday and holiday service runs at about five to seven minutes. The pattern splits at Sengakuji: local trains shuttle between Nishi-magome and Sengakuji about every ten minutes, timed to meet the through trains, while rapid, limited express and Airport Limited Express services carry on over Keikyu and Keisei tracks. Only the Airport Limited Express skips stations on the subway itself.
Rolling stock
Toei’s own fleet is the 5500 series, but six operators put trains on this line, more than anywhere else on the Tokyo subway: Keisei 3000, 3050, 3100, 3400 and 3700 series, Keikyu 600, N1000 and 1500 series, Hokuso 7300 and 7500 series, Chiba New Town Railway 9100, 9200 and 9800 series, and Shibayama 3600 series. They have standard gauge and 1,500 V DC overhead wire in common, which is what makes the arrangement possible.
Frequently asked questions
Because the line was conceived as a link between two private railways rather than as a self-contained metro, and it kept their standard gauge and overhead power supply. Keikyu joins it at Sengakuji and Keisei at Oshiage, and Hokuso, Chiba New Town Railway and Shibayama trains reach it over Keisei metals, so six operators’ trains use the same platforms.
You can stay on one train, and through services make this the only railway offering a direct link between the two. Neither airport has a subway station: the trains leave the Asakusa Line onto Keikyu at one end and Keisei at the other, and those companies charge their own fares on top. The Airport Limited Express takes about one hour and 46 minutes end to end. See airport access.
Because it was the first Tokyo subway line to be planned, in the 1920s, even though three Tokyo Metro lines opened before it. It carried the number alone until 1 July 1978, when the Toei lines were given names, and the number survives in official documents.