The Aoimori Railway Line is operated by the Aoimori Railway Company, a "third-sector" publicly and privately owned company. The railway facilities and tracks are owned by the local prefectural government as a "Category 3 Railway Business" under the Railway Business Act of Japan. The Aoimori Railway Company leases these facilities from the government and is responsible for operation of passenger trains on the tracks. This scheme is intended to mitigate the company's burden as an owner of fixed assets and is known as "track/service separation". Japan Freight Railway Company, the nationwide freight train operator, continues to use the line for freight services. For maintenance work, the line relies on the services of the Hachinohe Rinkai Railway Line.
The Aoimori Railway operates a fleet of 701 series two-car electric multiple units. One set was built from new in September 2002, while eight more were transferred from JR East. Two new two-car Aoimori 703 series EMUs were delivered in November 2013 and introduced from the start of the 15 March 2014 timetable revision.
History
The Aoimori Railway Line was completed as the – Shiriuchi portion of the Nippon Railway on September 1, 1891. When the Nippon Railway was nationalized on November 1, 1906, it became part of the Japanese National Railways system and was designated part of the Tohoku Main Line on October 12, 1909. With the privatization and dissolution of JNR on April 1, 1987, the line came under the control of the East Japan Railway Company. On December 1, 2002, with the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen, the portion of the Tohoku Main Line located in Iwate Prefecture became the Iwate Ginga Line, and the portion in Aomori Prefecture from the Iwate border to Hachinohe Station became the Aoimori Railway Line. With the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen extension to on 4 December 2010, the Tōhoku Main Line tracks between Hachinohe and Aomori were transferred to Aoimori Railway ownership.
Future
The railway has been negotiating with the city of Aomori since December 2015 on a proposal to open a new station between Tsutsui Station and Aomori Station near the point at which the railway passes under Japan National Route 103. The station would be part of a sports arena development for the 2025 National Sports Festival of Japan to be held in Aomori. The neighborhood the station would serve is a primarily residential area, but it would also provide access to some busy shopping centers within walking distance to the station.
