Tram systems in Hiroshima

Hiroshima’s electric tramway opened on 23 November 1912, initially linking Hiroshima Station with Aioi-bashi, Kamiyachō with Miyuki-bashi, and Hatchōbori with Hakushima. An extension west from Aioi-bashi to Koi, now Hiroden-nishi-hiroshima, followed on 8 December that year. These routes established much of the framework of the present city network.

The network expanded during the following decades. A route to Yokogawa opened in 1917, while the separate Miyajima railway began operating between Koi and Kusatsu on 22 August 1922. Successive extensions brought it to Miyajimaguchi on 1 February 1931, providing a rail connection to the ferry departure point for Miyajima.

The tramway’s ownership also evolved. Its original operator merged with Hiroshima Gas in 1917, before the transport business was separated into Hiroshima Electric Railway in April 1942. Routes through the Hijiyama area and towards Eba opened in 1944 to help transport workers to wartime factories.

The atomic bombing of Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 devastated the tramway. Hiroden lost 185 employees and students, while 108 of its 123 city trams were damaged and the overhead power supply suffered extensive destruction. Despite these losses, a limited service resumed in the western part of the city on 9 August, just three days after the bombing. The return of the trams became an important symbol of Hiroshima’s recovery.

Reconstruction continued despite shortages of materials and further damage caused by the Makurazaki Typhoon in September 1945. Routes and vehicles were progressively restored, while reconstruction of the city’s roads brought changes to some alignments. The Hakushima Line reopened on a revised route in 1952.

Growing car ownership created serious difficulties during the 1960s. Cars were permitted to use the tram tracks from 1963, leaving trams caught in congestion and contributing to falling passenger numbers. While many Japanese cities abandoned their tramways, Hiroden retained its system, introduced operating economies and bought larger second-hand trams from cities such as Osaka and Kobe. A renewed ban on cars using the tracks in 1971 helped improve operating conditions.

Modernisation later focused on accessibility, passenger comfort and better connections with other transport. The 5000 series Green Mover trams introduced fully low-floor vehicles in 1999, followed by the Japanese-built 5100 series Green Mover Max in 2005. Shorter 1000 series low-floor trams began arriving in 2013, allowing this type of vehicle to serve a wider range of city routes. Improvements to terminals at Hiroden-nishi-hiroshima, Yokogawa and Hiroshima Port also made interchange with trains and ferries easier.

A major change took place on 3 August 2025, when the Ekimae Ōhashi route opened. This provided a more direct approach to Hiroshima Station and brought trams into a new terminus on the second floor of the rebuilt station complex.

On 28 March 2026, circular route L began operating in both directions around the city centre, linking Kamiyachō and Hatchōbori with Matoba-chō, the Hijiyama area and Hiroden-honsha-mae. Its introduction also restored services at Matoba-chō and Danbara-itchōme, which had been suspended following the station approach changes in 2025.

Hiroshima currently has 9 tram lines, which are listed below.

Line	Description
L	Line L is a circular route linking Hiroden-honsha-mae, Kamiyachō-higashi, Hatchōbori, Matoba-chō, Hijiyama-shita and Minami-machi-rokuchōme .
1	Line 1 runs between Hiroshima Station and Hiroshima Port via Hatchōbori, Kamiyachō-higashi and Hiroden-honsha-mae.
2	Line 2 runs between Hiroshima Station and Hiroden-miyajima-guchi via Hatchōbori, Kamiyachō and Hiroden-nishi-hiroshima, continuing west over the Miyajima Line.
3	Line 3 runs between Hiroden-nishi-hiroshima and Hiroden-honsha-mae via Dobashi, Kamiyachō-nishi and Hondōri.
5	Line 5 runs between Hiroshima Station and Hiroshima Port via Hijiyama-shita and Minami-machi-rokuchōme.
6	Line 6 runs between Hiroshima Station and Eba via Hatchōbori, Kamiyachō and Dobashi.
7	Line 7 runs between Yokogawa Station and Hiroshima Port via Tōkaichi-machi, Kamiyachō-nishi and Hiroden-honsha-mae, with daytime services terminating at Hiroden-honsha-mae.
8	Line 8 runs between Yokogawa Station and Eba via Tōkaichi-machi and Dobashi.
9	Line 9 runs between Hatchōbori and Hakushima via Jogakuin-mae and Shukkeien-mae, with limited journeys continuing to and from Eba.

Hiroshima’s tram network uses standard-gauge track at 1,435 mm and is electrified at 600 V DC through overhead wires. The infrastructure combines an interconnected city tramway with the 16.1 km Miyajima Line between Hiroden-nishi-hiroshima and Hiroden-miyajima-guchi. The city routes are legally classified as tramways, while the Miyajima Line is classified as a railway, although through-running trams connect the two.

Much of the city network follows streets, with tracks generally reserved for trams but crossing road traffic at junctions. The Miyajima Line runs on a separate railway alignment, giving the western part of route 2 a different operating character from its city-centre section. The network is double-track, with junctions allowing several passenger routes to share the main central corridors.

The approach to Hiroshima Station includes an elevated section carrying trams into the second floor of the station building. This places the tram terminus on the same level as the main JR ticket gates, simplifying interchange with conventional trains and Shinkansen services.

Hiroden operates a varied fleet combining traditional single-car trams, high-floor articulated vehicles and modern fully low-floor trams. The single-car fleet includes purpose-built 700 and 800 series vehicles alongside older trams acquired from other Japanese cities. Examples include the former Kyoto 1900 series and vehicles originating in Osaka and Kobe.

The low-floor fleet includes the five-section 5000 series Green Mover, introduced in 1999, and the Japanese-built 5100 series Green Mover Max, introduced in 2005. Both are approximately 30 metres long. The later five-section 5200 series Green Mover APEX, introduced in 2019, is also 30 metres long and accommodates 151 passengers, including 58 seated. It was developed principally for services linking Hiroshima Station with Miyajimaguchi.

The shorter 1000 series, introduced in 2013 and generally branded Green Mover LEX, provides fully low-floor vehicles suited to the city routes. These trams are 18.6 metres long and accommodate 86 passengers, including 33 seated. The Japanese-built low-floor designs use independently rotating wheels, inverter-controlled traction motors and regenerative braking, with air conditioning and spaces for wheelchairs and pushchairs.

The older fleet also includes surviving trams damaged in the atomic bombing of 1945. Vehicles 651 and 652, built in 1942, remain available for passenger service and are used mainly during the morning peak. Other historic vehicles are retained for special events and charter operation. Accessibility therefore varies between services, with step-free boarding provided by the low-floor fleet.

Hiroden’s published investment programme provides for the introduction of three additional low-floor trams during Japanese financial years 2025-2027. The programme aims to replace ageing vehicles, improve accessibility and reduce maintenance requirements and vehicle failures.

Hiroden’s 2026-2028 business plan includes expanding tram-priority signals to improve journey times and reliability, alongside work towards single-person operation throughout the network. It also proposes reviewing the location and spacing of stops, including possible consolidation, to improve accessibility, safety and operating speeds. Specific stop changes and implementation dates have not yet been announced in the plan.

Further work around Hiroshima Station will complete the surroundings of the tram terminus opened in 2025. The large roof over the southern station plaza is scheduled for completion in Japanese financial year 2028, improving shelter around the station’s transport interchange.