私鉄(してつ)

してつ
noun
private railway
transportation
1. private railway
A railway company that is privately owned, as opposed to government-operated railways like JR.
私鉄(してつ)に乗(の)る。
To ride a private railway.
通勤(つうきん)には私鉄(してつ)を使(つか)っている。
I use a private railway for commuting.
東京(とうきょう)には多(おお)くの私鉄(してつ)が走(はし)っている。
Many private railways run in Tokyo.
私鉄(してつ)各社(かくしゃ)がICカードを導入(どうにゅう)した。
Various private railway companies introduced IC cards.
JRと私鉄(してつ)を乗(の)り継(つ)いで会社(かいしゃ)に通(かよ)っている。
I commute to work by transferring between JR and a private railway.

私鉄(してつ) refers to privately owned railways in Japan, as opposed to JR (Japan Railways) which was formerly government-owned.

Major private railways in Japan:

  • 東急(とうきゅう) (Tokyu)
  • 小田急(おだきゅう) (Odakyu)
  • 京王(けいおう) (Keio)
  • 西武(せいぶ) (Seibu)
  • 東武(とうぶ) (Tobu)
  • 阪急(はんきゅう) (Hankyu)
  • 近鉄(きんてつ) (Kintetsu)

Related terms

Related Words

Related: 鉄道(てつどう) (railway (general term))
Compare: JR (Japan Railways (formerly national))
Related: 地下鉄(ちかてつ) (subway)
Compare: 支線(しせん) (branch line)
Related: 民営(みんえい) (privately run)
core
Added 2026.1.13 20:15 · Revised 2026.10.20 22:07
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