Biwako Line

The line is named after Lake Biwa (琵琶湖, Biwa-ko), which the route runs along. Line nicknames were introduced when the newly privatized JR West intended to use "familiar" names over official line names, such as Tōkaidō Main Line and Fukuchiyama Line. Biwako Line did not appear on the first list, and instead The JR Kyoto Line was to be called up to Maibara. A move in Shiga Prefecture opposed the name, claiming that the name of Kyoto Line in Shiga sounds like an auxiliary, requiring its own name in the prefecture. Biwako Line was thus made to refer to the section between Maibara and Kyoto.

The section of the name was extended to Nagahama, on the alteration of electric supply from 20 kV AC to 1,500 V DC, which enabled through operation to Kyoto and Osaka.

Although the "Biwako Line" nickname is used by the operator JR West for passenger announcements, the official status of Tōkaidō Main Line has not been changed or discussed. The counterpart for the line, Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) uses its official name "Tōkaidō Main Line" for the section of JR West, at the connections of Kyoto and Maibara. The "Biwako Line" nickname appears in some local newspapers and real estate advertisements. Frequent passengers understand that the Biwako, JR Kyoto, JR Kobe lines are in fact one line, however, public recognition of the name is still in question, especially among non-users along the line.

• Special Rapid Service (新快速):
  • Trains terminate at Nagahama, Maibara and Yasu (some trains continue on Hokuriku Line to Omi-Shiotsu and Tsuruga). Stops at Nagahama, Tamura, Sakata, Maibara, Hikone, Notogawa, Omi-Hachiman, Yasu, Moriyama, Kusatsu, Minami-Kusatsu, Ishiyama, Otsu, Yamashina, and Kyoto. Continues on JR Kyoto Line to Osaka and beyond.
• Local trains (普通)
  • Operated as rapid service trains when running in the west of Takatsuki (Kyoto in the morning) (3 doors par car)
    • These local trains are mainly operated on the Biwako Line and make every stop on the line. They terminate at Maibara and Yasu.
  • JR Kyoto Line local trains (4 doors par car)
    • JR Kyoto Line local service extends to Yasu during rush hour on weekdays.

Stations are listed from east to west. The distance of Tokyo – Maibara is 445.9 km, and that of Tokyo – Kyoto is 513.6 km. Historically, the Tōkaidō Main Line continued from Tokyo to Kyoto and beyond, through Maibara. In the Japanese timetable books, the distances from Tokyo are still shown in the table, although the Biwako Line's officially begins at Maibara.

• ●: Trains stop.
• ○: Limited stop, early morning and late night only
• |: Trains pass.
• Local (4-door Commuter trains): JR Kyoto Line local trains
• Local (3-door Suburban trains): Operated as Rapid service trains west of Takatsuki (west of Kyoto in the morning)

Official line name	No.	Station	Japanese	Stop			Transfers	Location
				Local (Commuter)	Local (Suburban)	Special Rapid		Ward, City	Prefecture
Through service from/to Hokuriku Main Line
Hokuriku Main Line	A09	Nagahama	長浜		●	●	Hokuriku Main Line for Ōmi-Shiotsu and Tsuruga	Nagahama	Shiga
	A10	Tamura	田村		●	●
	A11	Sakata	坂田		●	●		Maibara
	A12	Maibara	米原		●	●	JR Central: Tōkaidō Shinkansen Tokaido Line for Gifu and Nagoya (CA83) ■ Ohmi Railway Main Line
Tōkaidō Main Line
	A13	Hikone	彦根		●	●	■ Ohmi Railway Main Line	Hikone
	A14	Minami-Hikone	南彦根		●	|
	A15	Kawase	河瀬		●	|
	A16	Inae	稲枝		●	|
	A17	Notogawa	能登川		●	●		Higashiōmi
	A18	Azuchi	安土		●	|		Ōmihachiman
	A19	Ōmi-Hachiman	近江八幡		●	●	■ Ohmi Railway Yōkaichi Line
	A20	Shinohara	篠原		●	|
	A21	Yasu	野洲	○	●	●		Yasu
	A22	Moriyama	守山	○	●	●		Moriyama
	A23	Rittō	栗東	○	●	|		Rittō
	A24	Kusatsu	草津	●	●	●	Kusatsu Line	Kusatsu
	A25	Minami-Kusatsu	南草津	●	●	●
	A26	Seta	瀬田	●	●	|		Ōtsu
	A27	Ishiyama	石山	●	●	●	Keihan Ishiyama Sakamoto Line (OT03: Keihan Ishiyama Station)
	A28	Zeze	膳所	●	●	|	Keihan Ishiyama Sakamoto Line (OT09: Keihan Zeze Station)
	A29	Ōtsu	大津	●	●	●
	A30	Yamashina	山科	●	●	●	Kosei Line (JR-B30) Kyoto Municipal Subway Tōzai Line (T07) Keihan Keishin Line (OT31: Keihan Yamashina Station)	Yamashina-ku, Kyoto	Kyoto
	A31	Kyoto	京都	●	●	●	Tōkaidō Shinkansen JR Kyoto Line Nara Line (JR-D01) Sagano Line (Sanin Main Line) (JR-E01)  B  Kintetsu Kyoto Line (B01) Kyoto Municipal Subway Karasuma Line (K11)	Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto
Through service from/to JR Kyoto Line
Within JR Kyoto Line:				Local (Northbound only)	Rapid	Special Rapid