This railroad was opened in order to connect the area in Mie and Shiga prefectures along the old Tokaido, which was not included in the route of the Tokaido Main Line of the Government Railway (Kantetsu); meanwhile, the Kansai Railway Company merged other surrounding railway companies to expand the route in order to set up a direct route between Nagoya and Osaka.
官営鉄道（官鉄）東海道本線のルートから外れた三重県・滋賀県の旧東海道沿いの地域を東海道線と連絡する目的で開業したが、周辺鉄道会社を合併することで路線規模を広げ、名古屋-大阪間の独自直通ルート開設を実現した。