Given the circumstances, the newly established bus route between Kobe Sannomiya Station and Fukuchiyama Station since 2006 have effectively changed transportation between the Hanshin area and the northern Kinki area, because the route needs far less time and money than the railway and there is no need to transfer between buses.
その中で2006年より神戸～福知山系統（鉄道利用よりも大幅に速くて安く、乗り換えも不要である）が新設されたことは、阪神地区と北近畿の交通に、何らかの変化をもたらす可能性がある。