Sōtetsu JR Link Line Project Advances

On 28 March 2019 at Hazawa-Yokohama-Kokudai station, a new facility built on a JR Freight marshalling yard, a ceremony was held to mark progression of the construction of the Sōtetsu JR Link Line Project, the first phase of the new Sōtetsu Shin-Yokohama Line in Yokohama and Kanagawa prefectures. The new link will avoid Yokohama-Hazawa station on the JR Tōkaido freight line. Hazawa Yokohama-Kokudai station will be used by suburban trains operated by private Sagami Railway and JR East.

Scheduled for inauguration on 30 November 2019, the Sōtetsu JR Link Line has been built by the Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency (JRTT). Test running is expected to start in August. The second part of the link line, known as the Sōtetsu Tōkyū Link Line, is scheduled for completion in 2022 and will connect Sagami Railway and Tōkyū Corporation private networks.

During the celebrations a new Class 12000 EMU was presented. Six of these ten-car trains are to be used for services on Sōtetsu Shin-Yokohama Line services.