Taiheiyō Ferry

The Taiheiyō Ferry (太平洋フェリー, Taiheiyō-Ferii, literally Pacific Ferry) is a privately-owned cruiseferry operator connecting Nagoya, Sendai, and Tomakomai in Japan. It is a subsidiary of the Nagoya-based Meitetsu Group, a group of companies that focuses primarily on rail transport in the Chūkyō metropolitan area.

Taiheiyō Ferry
太平洋フェリー
The Ishikari under the Meiko Nishi Ohashi bridges
LocaleJapan
Transit typeCruiseferry
Began operationOctober 20, 1970 (1970-10-20)
No. of lines1
No. of vessels3
No. of terminals3
Websitetaiheiyo-ferry.co.jp

History

The Taiheiyō Ferry was first founded as the Taiheiyō Enkai Ferry (太平洋沿海フェリー, Pacific Coastal Ferry) in 1970, operating a line between Nagoya and Ōita City with the Arkas, with a stop at Nachikatsuura, Wakayama added in May 3rd, 1975.[1] The current route between Nagoya, Sendai, and Tomakomai soon began in 1973.[2]

In 1982, the Meitetsu Group acquired the Taiheiyō Enkai Ferry and renamed it to its current name.[3]

Routes

The Taiheiyō Ferry operates a single regular route between Nagoya, Sendai, and Tomakomai. Ships operate every day between Sendai and Tomakomai, and every other day between Nagoya and Sendai. Out of the three ships the company operates, only the Kiso and Ishikari stop at Nagoya. The company also operates seasonal routes to Ise Bay, Kōchi, Okinawa, and the Bonin Islands.[4]

Fleet

Current fleet

The Taiheiyō Ferry has operated a total of twelve ships, three of which are in operation: the Kiso, Ishikari, and Kitakami, which are named after the Kiso, Ishikari, and Kitakami rivers, respectively. The names are chosen to represent each region (Chūbu, Hokkaido, and Tōhoku) that the ferry serves.[2]

All ships can carry a certain number of cars as well as passengers. Additionally, all ships are equipped with dining rooms and rooms for lodging.[2]

Ship Built Builder Gross Tonage Length Width Passengers Vehicles Image
Kiso (2nd generation)[5] July 2004 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Shimonoseki Shipyard		 15,795 tons 199.9 m 27.0 m 800 people 113 passenger cars
188 trucks
Ishikari (3rd generation)[6] March 2011 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Shimonoseki Shipyard		 15,762 tons 199.9 m 27.0 m 783 people 100 passenger cars
189 trucks
Kitakami (2nd generation)[7][8][9] January 2019 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Shimonoseki Shipyard		 13,694 tons 192.5 m 27.0 m 535 people 146 passenger cars
166 trucks

Former fleet
Ship Builder Entered service Left service Notes
Arkas Setoda Shipyard 1972 1987 Sold to Strintzis Lines
Albireo Setoda Shipyard 1973 1989 Sold to Strintzis Lines
Alnasl NHI Corporation
Toyama Shipyard		 1973 1975 Sold to Nihon Car Ferry
Argo NHI Corporation
Toyama Shipyard		 1973 1980 Sold to Kansai Kisen
Ishikari (1st generation) Naikai Zosen Corporation
Setoda Shipyard		 1975 1991 Sold to Strintzis Lines
Daisetsu Naikai Zosen Corporation
Setoda Shipyard		 1975 1985 Sold to Higashi Nihon Ferry
Kiso (1st generation) Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Shimonoseki Shipyard		 1987 2004 Sold to Hellenic Seaways
Ishikari (2nd generation) Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Kobe Shipyard		 1989 2011 Sold to Golden Spring Enterprise
Kitakami (1st generation) Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Shimonoseki Shipyard		 1989 2019 Scrapped

Incidents

During the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake, the Kitakami (1st generation) was moored at Sendai. The Kitakami managed to escape to sea before the ensuing tsunami, but Taiheiyō Ferry's terminal was heavily damaged along with the rest of the Port of Sendai. 123 cars belonging to the company and most of the equipment on shore were lost. Regular services to Sendai resumed on June 5th, and repairs to the terminal building were completed on July 8th.[10]

See also
  •  Japan portal
  •  Transport portal

References
  1. "８：太平洋フェリー／苫小牧－仙台－名古屋航路、今後も３隻体制維持。社内外でのコスト削減進める" [8.Taiheiyō Ferry/ Tomakomai - Sendai - Nagoya route continue maintain 3 fleets , promote cost reduction inside and outside the company] (in Japanese). Japan Maritime Daily. February 13, 2002. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  2. "「いしかり」で行く北海道航路、充実の船内でデイクルーズ" [Sailing to the Hokkaido route by "Ishikari" , Day cruise in fulfilling shipboard]. Web Cruise (in Japanese). Kaiji Press. p. 3.
  3. "会社沿革" [Corporate history]. Taiheiyō Ferry (in Japanese). Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  4. "運航日程表 ２０１９年１２月～２０２０年３月まで" [Sailing schedule December 2019 - March 2020] (PDF). Taiheiyō Ferry (in Japanese). Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  5. "KISO（きそ） 詳細データ" [KISO detailed data]. www.nmri.go.jp. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  6. 国内最大クラス クルーズフェリー 新 “いしかり”の紹介 [Introduction of Japan's largest class cruise ferry new "Ishikari"]. 47. Journal of the JIME. p. 2.
  7. "三菱造船 下関で太平洋フェリー向け大型フェリーの命名・進水式を実施名古屋～仙台～苫小牧定期航路に就航する新「きたかみ」" [Mitsubishi Shipbuilding hold christening & launching ceremony at Shimonoseki ship yard, New "Kitakami" put in to Nagoya - Sendai - Tomakomai route]. プレスリリース・ニュースリリース配信シェアNo.1｜PR TIMES. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  8. "船舶紹介｜太平洋フェリー". www.taiheiyo-ferry.co.jp. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  9. "船舶紹介" [Fleet Information]. www.taiheiyo-ferry.co.jp. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  10. 川尻稔 (2011). "仙台港での地震津波遭遇状況報告 3 月 11 日その瞬間". 津波に遭遇した船の行動事例集 [Tsunami encountered ships action cases] (PDF) (in Japanese). Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. p. 50. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
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