Ikebukuro Station

infobox japan station

---

caption=Ikebukuro Station building (east side) at night, looking South on Meiji-Dori.
name=池袋
namerom=Ikebukuro
pref=Tokyo
ward=Toshima
address=1-28-1,2 Minami-Ikebukuro
jaloc=東京都豊島区南池袋一丁目28-1～2
open=1903
line=Yamanote Line
Saikyō Line
Shōnan-Shinjuku Line
Seibu Ikebukuro Line
Tōbu Tōjō Line
Marunouchi Line
Yūrakuchō Line
Fukutoshin Line
operator=East Japan Railway Company, Seibu Railway, Tōbu Railway, Tokyo Metro
bus=t4

nihongo|Ikebukuro Station|池袋駅|Ikebukuro-eki is a train station located in the Ikebukuro district of Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. With 2.71 million passengers on an average daily in 2007, it is the second-busiest train station in the world (after Shinjuku Station), and the busiest station in the Tobu, Seibu and Tokyo Metro networks. It primarily serves commuters from Saitama and other residential areas northwest of the city center. It is the Tokyo terminal of the Seibu Ikebukuro Line and the Tōbu Tōjō Line.

Lines

*JR East
**Saikyō Line
**Shōnan-Shinjuku Line - through service to Takasaki Line and Utsunomiya Line; also used by "Narita Express" trains
**Yamanote Line - along with Ōsaki, one of two stations where Yamanote loop trains are taken in and out of service
*Seibu Railway
**Ikebukuro Line
*Tōbu Railway
**Tōjō Line
*Tokyo Metro subways
**Marunouchi Line
**Yūrakuchō Line
**Fukutoshin Line

Layout

Ikebukuro Station has two entrances, East and West. The JR lines run north/south through the center. The Tobu platforms are to the northwest and the Seibu platforms are to the southeast. Both Tobu and Seibu operate department stores adjacent to their terminal stations. (Ironically, "Seibu" (西武) starts with the kanji for "west" (西), but its platforms are in the eastern part of the station, while "Tōbu" (東武) starts with the character for "east" (東), but its platforms are in the western part of the station.)

The Marunouchi Line and Yūrakuchō Line run east/west two stories underground, while the Yurakucho New Line is four stories underground to the west of the main station complex. The latter line will eventually be extended south toward Shinjuku and Shibuya along Meiji-dori, and by 2012 will offer through service to the Tokyu Toyoko Line.

The surrounding Ikebukuro district is a major commercial center. Sunshine City, Parco, Mitsukoshi, and Bic Camera are located to the east of the station, while the Metropolitan Plaza is located to the west.

History

The station was opened on April 1, 1903 by the national railway. This is relatively late opening among major stations on the Yamanote Line. The station and the surrounding area saw rapid development after the opening of the Tōjō Railway Line (present-day Tobu Tōjō Line) in 1914 and the Musashino Railway Line (present-day Seibu Ikebukuro LIne) in 1915.

Adjacent stations

-!colspan=5|
East Japan Railway Company

-!colspan=5|
Seibu Railway
j-rserv|service=Limited Express
previous="Terminus"|next=ja-stalink|Tokorozawa
-!colspan=5|
Tōbu Railway

-!colspan=5|
Tokyo Metro

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References

* cite book
title = nihongo|JR全線全駅ステーション倶楽部編(上)|Complete JR Line/Station Compendium (Vol. 1)
publisher = nihongo|文春文庫|Bunshun Bunko
year = 1988
month = September
location = Tokyo, Japan
pages = 37-38
language = Japanese
id = ISBN 4-16-748701-2

External links

* [http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/stations/e108.html JR Ikebukuro Station map] en icon
* [http://www.seibu-group.co.jp/railways/unyu/ekimap/1101.html Seibu Ikebukuro Station map] ja icon
* [http://www.tobu.co.jp/station/info/7105.html Tōbu Ikebukuro Station information] ja icon
* [http://www.tokyometro.jp/rosen/eki/ikebukuro/index.html Tokyo Metro Ikebukuro Station information] ja icon
* [http://www.tokyometro.jp/fukutoshin/#/station/ikebukuro Fukutoshin Line Ikebukuro Station information] ja icon