Kanda consists of two separate stations that form an interchange. The elevated station is operated by JR East and the underground station is operated by the Tokyo Metro. Although they are an interchange, passengers must pass through ticket barriers and pay separate fares to switch between services.
JR East station
The JR East station is the older of the two stations and opened in 1919. It is situated on an elevated viaduct and has three island platforms serving six tracks. The platforms are numbered sequentially from east to west starting with platform 1. Yamanote Line trains use the inner platforms 2 and 3, Keihin-Tōhoku Line trains use platforms 1 and 4, and Chūō Line trains use platforms 5 and 6 as they split off from the main line north of Kanda. There are an additional two tracks east of the station; these are used for Shinkansen trains running between Tokyo Station and. There are two sets of entrances and exits that allow passengers to access the JR East station. The northern set, the north and east exits, offers a connection to the Ginza Line on the Tokyo Metro. The southern set, the south and west exits, has a View Plaza travel service centre. Both exits have rows of ticket machines, ticket gates, and a JR reservation office.
Tokyo Metro
The Tokyo Metro station is the newer of the two station and opened in 1931 as part of an extension of first subway line in Asia, the Ginza Line. There is a simple island platform setup with two tracks. Platform 1 is for southbound trains to and whilst platform 2 is used for northbound trains to and. Access to the station is provided by a total of six entrances and exits. Exits and 1 and 2 are used as the connection to the JR East station and are on Chūō-dōri. Exits 3 and 4 are on the same street but in the centre of the station near Kanda-Kajichō. Exits 5 and 6 are at the northernmost part of the station.
History
The station first opened on March 1, 1919 when the Chūō Main Line was extended from Manseibashi Station, which existed between Kanda and, to Tokyo Station. The tracks of Tōhoku Main Line, now used by trains on the Keihin-Tōhoku Line and the Yamanote Line, extended from Akihabara Station to Kanda and further to Tokyo on November 1, 1925. This extension completed the loop of the Yamanote Line. The subway station opened on November 21, 1931. On this day, the subway closed the temporary terminal at Manseibashi Station and made Kanda Station the new terminus. The station became an intermediate station on April 29, 1932 when the line was extended to Mitsukoshimae Station. The extension through Kanda Station of the Tōhoku Shinkansen from its previous terminus at to breached a pair of express tracks of the Tohoku Main Line through the station. These are being reinstated by the Tōhoku Jūkan Line project. The project was due to be completed in 2013 but was subsequently delayed until 2015 as a result of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. From March 14, 2015 onwards, Keihin-Tōhoku rapid services began serving the station.
Passenger statistics
In fiscal 2013, the JR East station was used by an average of 97,589 passengers daily, making it the fortieth-busiest station operated by JR East. In fiscal 2013, the Tokyo Metro station was used by an average of 52,612 passengers per day, making it the seventieth-busiest station operated by Tokyo Metro. The average daily passenger figures for each operator in previous years are as shown below.
Fiscal year
JR East
Tokyo Metro
2000
111,311
2005
105,782
2010
101,075
2011
99,307
49,410
2012
97,779
52,247
2013
97,589
52,612
Note that JR East figures are for boarding passengers only.
