Shima Electric Railway

In 1923, Shima Electric Railway (志摩電気鉄道, Shima Denki Tetsudō) was established by Kakuya Morimoto, and by 1924 the plan for a railroad to Shima was finally approved. This plan specified Toba Station as the origin, as well as a track gauge of 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in), allowing the line to connect directly with the Sangū Line (also 1,067 mm) in Toba. The original plan also specified that Ugata Station would be the terminus. However, shortly before construction began, a request was made to members of an already-established railway company, Tokyu Corporation, to see if the plan drawn up by Shima Electric Railway was sound. In the end, the only recommendation made was that the terminus be extended from Ugata to a nearby uninhabited island in Ago Bay called Kashiko Island, citing the island's natural beauty as conducive to establishing a profitable resort and tourism industry catering to travelers and pilgrims already coming to the area to visit nearby Ise Grand Shrine. Executives at Shima Electric Railway incorporated this suggestion into their plan and decided the line would include two stations on Kashiko Island: Kashikojima Station for tourists, and Shinjukō Station (真珠港駅, lit: Pearl Port Station), the new terminus, for use as a freight station by the area's marine industry. However, the people living near Ugata, the original terminus, opposed the new plan because they felt having the line's endpoint in their area would bring economic benefit. This period of opposition lasted for four years, during which people living near Ugata refused to sell the land needed by Shima Electric Railway to lay track leading to Kashiko Island, thereby delaying construction. After an agreement was reached, the line was finally completed and opened in 1929, five years after the original plan had been drafted.

In 1944, Shima Electric Railway, along with six other companies, merged to form Mie Transport (Sanco). Twenty years later, the railway department of Sanco split off to become a separate company called Mie Electric Railway (Sanden), however this organization was short-lived as it was bought up by railway giant Kinki Nippon Railway (Kintetsu) the following year, and thus in 1965 the line came under its current name and ownership.

Kintetsu renovation

In acquiring the line, Kintetsu now had a problem because the Shima Line, which originated at Toba Station, was not connected with the rest of Kintetsu's extensive rail network which stretched only as far as Ujiyamada Station in Ise. Moreover, the railway gauge and voltage used on the Shima Line were different from the majority of Kintetsu lines, including the nearby Yamada Line which terminated at Ujiyamada. For the time being, Kintetsu offered bus service between Ujiyamada and Toba, but in the late 1960s they decided it was worthwhile to create a rail connection between the two in hopes of attracting customers from the upcoming 1970 World's Fair in Osaka by offering direct rail service to the area. This was the impetus for the construction of the Toba Line, and to make direct service possible between the Shima Line, the under-construction Toba Line, the Yamada Line, and beyond, the Shima Line was closed for four months in late 1969 and early 1970 to change the gauge to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) and double the voltage to 1,500 V DC to match the other Kintetsu lines it would connect with. Other improvements were added such as the ATS system, a new switching network, and gentler curves. The renovated Shima Line and the newly built Toba Line opened together in March 1970, and Kintetsu began running limited express trains from Kintetsu Namba and Kintetsu Nagoya to Kashikojima just in time for the beginning of the World's Fair. The sharp increase of passengers on the line also motivated Kintetsu to invest money in a variety of tourism business enterprises in the Ise-Shima, especially along the Shima Line.

In 1986, it was decided that a second track on the Shima Line would assist in increasing the speed and number of trains on the line. Construction took several years and now most but not all of the line has dual tracks. The Aomine Tunnel between Shiraki and Gochi was also added to the line during this phase.

Timeline

• July 23, 1929 - Toba - Kashikojima - Shinjukō section opened by Shima Electric Railway.
• February 11, 1944 - Shima Electric Railway and six other companies merge to form Mie Transport (Sanco). Line officially renamed Sanco Shima Line.
• December 1, 1946 - Ugataguchi Station officially renamed to Shima-Yokoyama Station.
• July 25, 1949 - Shima-Akasaki Station opens.
• February 1, 1964 - Sanco railway division splits off and forms a new company Mie Electric Railway (Sanden). Line officially renamed Sanden Shima Line.
• April 1, 1965 - Sanden, and all of its lines, are acquired by Kintetsu. Line officially renamed Shima Line.
• July 1, 1969 - Freight service along the line ceases and Shinjukō Station closes. Kashikojima becomes endpoint.
• December 10, 1969 - Shima Line is closed and construction to make various improvements on the line begins.
• March 1, 1970 - Improvements are finished and the Shima Line reopens, now connected to the rest of the Kintetsu rail network. Shima-Isobe Station renamed Kaminogō; Hasama Station renamed Shima-Isobe. Direct service begins from both Osaka and Nagoya to Kashikojima begins.
• March 6, 1988 - Second track opens on Ugata to Shima-Shimmei section.
• December 8, 1990 - Second track opens on Shima-Shimmei to Kashikojima section.
• November 6, 1992 - Second track opens on Toba to Nakanogō section.
• December 22, 1992 - Second track opens on Funatsu to Kamo section.
• April 28, 1993 - Second track opens on Gochi to Kaminogō section.
• June 1, 1993 - Second track opens on Shima-Isobe to Ugata section.
• September 11, 1993 - Second track opens on Kamo to Gochi section. Aomine Tunnel completed.
• September 21, 1993 - Tracks re-routed through Aomine Tunnel on Shiraki to Gochi section. Total line length reduced by 0.7 km.
• May 30, 2001 - Wanman driver-only operation begins.