The Okhotsk limited express train, named after the Sea of Okhotsk, runs from Sapporo to Abashiri twice a day. The Taisetsulimited express train runs from Asahikawa to Abashiri with two return workings daily. The limited rapid train Kitami operates between Asahikawa and Kitami, with one return service daily. Local services along the line are roughly divided into three segments. In the segment between Asahikawa and Kamikawa, the line functions as a commuter rail of Asahikawa City. There is one local train service per one to two hours. The segment between Kamikawa and Engaru is a sparsely populated area. Between Kamikawa and Shirataki, a local train runs one lap per day. For the segment between Engaru and Abashiri, there is one local train service per one to two hours.
The principal route between Sapporo and Okhotsk Subprefecture has changed several times. Originally, the route was the Hakodate Main Line to Asahikawa, then the southbound Nemuro Main Line and then the northbound line from Ikeda, via the Abashiri Main Line to Kitami. The route shortened by when the section between Takikawa and Furano on the Nemuro Main Line opened in 1913. Another route, northbound from Asahikawa to Nayoro, then southeast to Kitami was completed as the Nayoro Main Line and Yūbetsu Line in 1921. A third route was a shortcut between Asahikawa and Engaru, straight through the Kitami Pass. The Sekihoku Line, completed in 1932, finally completed the main route still used today. The current Sekihoku Main Line consists of the remnants of these three lines. The section between Shin-Asahikawa and Engaru is from the Sekihoku Line, the section between Engaru and Kitami from the Yūbetsu Line, and the section between Kitami and Abashiri from the Abashiri Main Line. The first of the abovementioned sections to open was from Abashiri to Kitami in 1912. The Kitami to Engaru line was opened between 1912 and 1915 as a gauge line, but was converted to gauge in 1916. The Asahikawa to Kamikawa section opened between 1922 and 1923, and the Engaru to Shiritaki section between 1927 and 1929. The final section, including the Ishikita tunnel, opened in 1932. In July 2015, JR Hokkaidoannounced that it would be closing four stations line inMarch 2016, due to low passenger usage.
