Hongo-sanchome Station
M21 E08 · Marunouchi Line and Oedo Line · Bunkyo
Hongo-sanchome Station (本郷三丁目)
The Marunouchi Line platforms here are among the oldest postwar subway platforms in the city, opened on 20 January 1954 when trains were four cars long and the platform measured 80 m; space had been left in the tunnel for two more cars, and it was used in 1960. The station building above was rebuilt between 2000 and 2002, deliberately designed to be visible from the main roads it sits back from. The address caught up with the name in 1965, when rezoning left the station standing in Hongo-nichome.
Toei’s Oedo Line platform arrived on 12 December 2000, and the two have never been joined. There is no underground passage between them – running one would have crossed private land at considerable cost – so changing between M21 and E08 means coming up to the street and going back down, and Korakuen is usually the easier place to make that change. Tokyo Metro counted 52,058 entries and exits a day in 2025, the lowest of any Marunouchi Line station with a connection, and Toei 22,043 in 2024.
Finding Hongo-sanchome on the signs
Every line gives the station its own letter-and-number code. You never have to read the Japanese name to find the right platform.
Station numbers at Hongo-sanchome
Tokyo signposts every platform, exit and train door with a letter and a two-digit number. Matching the number is faster than reading the name — and it is what you will see on the map, in announcements and on the platform edge.
First and last trains at Hongo-sanchome
| Line and direction | Weekdays first – last | Saturdays, Sundays & holidays first – last |
|---|---|---|
| MMarunouchiM21 towards Ikebukuro | 05:26 – 00:20 | 05:26 – 00:20 |
| MMarunouchiM21 towards Ogikubo | 05:09 – 00:04 to Shinjuku | 05:10 – 00:04 to Shinjuku |
| EOedoE08 towards Tochomae | 05:24 – 00:42 to Kiyosumi-shirakawa | 05:24 – 00:42 to Kiyosumi-shirakawa |
| EOedoE08 towards Tochomae | 05:03 – 00:08 | 05:03 – 00:08 |
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.
How often do trains run?
| Line | Weekdays, busiest hour | Sat / Sun / holidays, busiest hour |
|---|---|---|
| MMarunouchi | 27 trains/hour (about one every 2.2 min) | 15 trains/hour |
| EOedo | 16 trains/hour (about one every 3.8 min) | 12 trains/hour |
Departures in one direction during the hour with the most trains at this station, counted in the operators’ timetable.
Next stations from Hongo-sanchome
Scheduled running time between Hongo-sanchome and the stations either side of it.
| Line | Next station | Running time |
|---|---|---|
| MMarunouchi | M22Korakuen | 2 min |
| MMarunouchi | M20Ochanomizu | 2 min |
| EOedo | E07Kasuga | 1 min |
| EOedo | E09Ueno-okachimachi | 2 min |
Transfers and connections
- Subway: transfer between Marunouchi Line and Oedo Line. The Tokyo Metro lines and the Toei Subway lines belong to different companies, so a trip that uses both costs more than one operator alone — see fares.
Accessibility
| Line | Step-free by elevator | Accessible toilet | Escalator | Exits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MMarunouchi | Yes | Yes | Yes | 2 |
| EOedo | Yes | Yes | Yes | 5 |
- Marunouchi Line: Step-free elevator route street-gate-platform (official “1-route by elevator”). Operator page (checked Oct 20, 2026).
- Oedo Line: Toei: step-free “1-route” secured; 3 elevator(s) on this line. Elevator exit(s): 5. Operator page (checked Oct 20, 2026).
Taken from the operators’ own accessibility pages and nothing else. Tokyo Metro: the “1-route” (step-free street-gate-platform path by elevator, slope, stair lift or wheelchair escalator) is complete at all 180 stations; a separate list shows stations with an elevator-only 1-route. Toei: every station has elevators and a street-gate-platform “1-route” is secured.
What is near Hongo-sanchome Station?
The University of Tokyo’s Hongo campus spreads out north of the crossroads above the station, and the Red Gate, the Akamon, is about 390 m from an exit – closer from here than from the station that carries the university’s name. The University Museum is roughly 170 m away, the Institute of Advanced Studies on Asia around 220 m, and the faculty buildings of science and medicine are within the same walk. Hongo Central Church stands about 190 m off, the Bunkyo Hometown History Museum some 350 m, and Toyo Gakuen University around 360 m, with old shops and inns scattered among them.
| Place | Distance (straight line) | On foot, estimated |
|---|---|---|
| The University Museum, the University of Tokyo 東京大学総合研究博物館 | 170 m | about 3 min |
| Hongo Central Church 本郷中央教会 | 190 m | about 3 min |
| Institute of Advanced Studies on Asia 東洋文化研究所 | 220 m | about 4 min |
| Mikawa Inari Shrine 三河稲荷神社 | 290 m | about 5 min |
| Yakuozan Sannenji Temple 薬王山三念寺 | 330 m | about 5 min |
| Bunkyo Hometown History Museum 文京ふるさと歴史館 | 350 m | about 6 min |
| Toyo Gakuen University 東洋学園大学 | 360 m | about 6 min |
| Hoshinji 法真寺 | 390 m | about 6 min |
Places from OpenStreetMap within 400 m of the station. The walking time is an estimate (straight line plus 30 %, 80 m a minute), not a measured route. © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.