The unique "Sasara Train" snow clearer which uses rotating bamboo brushes to clear tracks in winter
The Sapporo Street Car(札幌市電,Sapporo Shiden?) is a tram network of Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is operated by Sapporo City Transportation Bureau. Among local residents, the line is often called the Electric Railway(電車,Densha?), as well as the Streetcar. The first section of the network opened in 1909 as Sapporo Stone Horsecar Railway (札幌石材馬車鉄道,Sapporo Sekizai Basha Tetsudō?), which was later electrified in 1918. The Transportation Bureau took over the network in 1927.
Double-track line: Whole the line, excluding inside termini
Electric supply: Whole the line (600 VDC), overhead wire
Lines and routes
At its peak, in 1958, there was a 25 km network with 11 lines and 7 routes. However, the network shrank later due to motorization and the opening of Sapporo Municipal Subway.
Lines: Officially, there are three lines currently operated. They are collectively called Ichijō-Yamahana Street Car Line (一条・山鼻軌道線) or simply Street Car Line (軌道線).
Ichijō Line (一条線): Nishi yon chōme — Nishi jūgo chōme
Yamahana nishi Line (山鼻西線): Nishi jūgo chōme — Chūō toshokan mae
Yamahana Line (山鼻線): Chūō toshokan mae — Susukino
Routes: Almost all the tramcars run through whole the three lines, from Nishi yon chōme to Susukino. Other sectional services are:
Nishi yon chōme — Nishisen jūroku jō
Nishi yon chōme — Chūō toshokan mae
Chūō toshokan mae — Susukino
Tramcars come once per 7 to 8 minutes on daytime. They come once per 3 minutes at busy hours on weekdays, in the section between Nishi yon chōme and Nishisen jūroku jō. The fare is ¥170. Like the subway, the tram accepts With You Card, a prepaid magnetic card.
