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While discussing this question I found a new problem: is there a way to say "destination line" in Japanese using a noun or a compound noun?

I am thinking of the ◯◯ in the following construction:

「乗換駅{のりかええき}は何ですか」
「梅田です」
「◯◯は何ですか」 (何線に乗り換えなければなりませんか)
「御堂筋線です」

I already learnt 乗り換え先{さき} is not what I wanted (supposedly it means "destination station of a destination line"). 乗り換え電車{でんしゃ}、乗り換え線｛せん｝ do not seem to work. 目的線{もくてきせん} neither.

I thought of 次の電車, but that is ambiguous and 次の線 is wrong.

Is it possible to say without using a verb?

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    Why not 何線に乗り換えますか？I think you might be adding a layer of complexity. Naturally speaking, you'll hear "A駅でB線に乗り換える".　"Is there away to say without using a verb?" I guess I don't understand why you want to force a less natural construction.
    – kiss-o-matic
    Commented Oct 8, 2015 at 14:38
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    +1 for using Osaka stations!
    – istrasci
    Commented Oct 8, 2015 at 15:55
  • Is there any reason you use the code environment rather than the quote environment? The Japanese characters in quote environment are bigger and easier to read (and not a different font!). (Use quotes with > and break lines with two spaces or a <br/> tag.)
    – Earthliŋ ♦
    Commented Oct 9, 2015 at 21:07
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    @Earthliŋ Thanks, didn't even notice.
    – macraf
    Commented Oct 9, 2015 at 22:45

2 Answers 2

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乗り換え先 is pretty ambiguous, in that it's just 乗り換え with a 〜先 suffix, and not some kind of established train lingo. It literally signifies the “destination of transfer”, which could refer to either the station of transfer, the transfer line, or the final destination station after the transfer.

Using that ambiguity to your advantage, you could qualify it by saying 乗り換え先の○○○, or any other way that clarifies what you mean:

  • 乗り換え先の電車は何ですか？
  • 乗り換え先の路線は何ですか？
  • 乗り換え先は何線ですか？

Or, now that I think about it, you don't even need the 〜先. A simple 乗り換えは何線{なにせん}ですか will work.

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    I guess my problem was that the verb 乗り換える (and 乗り換えする) is equivalent to English "to transfer", however the noun 乗り換え works more like the English "connection"/"connecting" (meaning both: a process of connecting and the entity one is connecting to). Just like there is "connecting flight" or "what's your connection from here"?
    – macraf
    Commented Oct 9, 2015 at 10:55
  • Good point. People say things like 乗り換えを待つ or 乗り換えが来た referring to the train itself.
    – mirka
    Commented Oct 9, 2015 at 11:52
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how about:

行先降車線

In writing, I bet that is easily understood. In conversation, "ゆきさきこうしゃせん" might be difficult to understand. But, with context, it might work.

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  • One should perhaps note that this particular phrase returns zero hits when googled (not even this page, curiously).
    – senshin
    Commented Oct 10, 2015 at 1:26
  • @senshin Surely no native would say that. But sometimes it's useful to guess at words by using 筆談. This can start a conversation. I've learned that some Japanese (sort of) see kanji while they speak.
    – david.t
    Commented Oct 11, 2015 at 1:03
  • I guess that could work. But if one is going to say something that no native would say anyway, I would think that a descriptive circumlocution is more likely than a string of kanji to be effective at conveying what one is trying to say.
    – senshin
    Commented Oct 11, 2015 at 16:14

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