The Seishin-Yamate Line (西神山手線, Seishin-Yamate-sen), also known by its nickname of "Midori no U-Line" (Japanese: みどりのUライン, lit.

On 15 October 1971, a railway license was issued to the Kobe Municipal Transportation Bureau to build a subway line linking the Myōdani district to the Shin-Kobe Shinkansen station; construction on the first segment of that line began on 25 November of that year.

The line was extended to Shin-Kobe on 18 June 1985; a western extension to Gakuen-toshi (from Myodani) opened that same day.

On 18 March 1987, the final segment of the subway line opened between Gakuen-toshi and Seishin-chūō.

[citation needed] The Hokushin Kyuko Electric Railway opened on 2 April 1988, providing service between Tanigami and Shin-Kobe.