 The series is a successor to the 8000 series trains that has run on Port Liner since the line's opening in 1981.Introduced on February 2, 2006, simultaneously with the extension of the Port Liner to Kobe Airport, the 2000 series is based on the Kawasaki Computer Control Vehicle (KCV) developed by Kawasaki Heavy Industries, the same company that manufactures the 8000 series rolling stock used for the Port Liner since service began.Therefore, it has guide wheels for floating switches installed on both sides of the cars.