Closure in 2020 JR Hokkaido had been planning to permanently close the section between Hokkaido-Iryodaigaku and Shin-Totsukawa on 7 May 2020, but the company moved closure forward to 17 April due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Former connecting lines Shinkotoni Station: An 11 km horse-drawn gauge line operated from Sapporo north west to Kawabata, opening in 1911 and crossing the Sassho Line near Shinkotoni. Petrol locomotives were introduced in 1922. The line was replaced by buses in 1943. Tobetsu Station: A 31 km 762 mm gauge line was opened to Obukuro in sections between 1949 and 1952. Typhoon Marie (1954) caused significant damage to the line, and repair was considered impractical. The line was formally closed in 1958. An 11 km 762 mm gauge line operated to Ebetsu, on the Hakodate Main Line, although at each terminus, the 762 mm gauge stations were on the opposite banks of the Tobetsugawa and Ishikarigawa rivers (respectively) to the JR stations. References External links Lines of Hokkaido Railway Company Rail transport in Hokkaido 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan Railway lines opened in 1931