Kamaishi Station Explained

Kamaishi Station
Native Name:釜石駅
Native Name Lang:ja
Address:22-5 Isuzu-cho, Kamaishi-shi, Iwate-ken 026-0031
Country:Japan
Platforms:1 side platform and 2 island platforms
Connections:Bus
Tracks:5
Distance:90.2 km from (Kamaishi Line)
36.6 km from (Rias Line)
Structure:At grade
Status:Staffed (Midori no Madoguchi)
Opened:17 September 1939
Passengers:233 (JR East), 113 (Sanriku) daily
Pass Year:FY2018
Map Type:Japan Iwate Prefecture#Japan

is a junction railway station in the city of Kamaishi, Iwate, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and the Third-sector Sanriku Railway.

Lines

Kamaishi Station is a terminal station of the JR East Kamaishi Line and is located 90.2 kilometers from the opposing terminus at . It is an intermediate station for the Sanriku Railway's Rias Line. The station was formerly also a terminal station for the Sanriku Railway's Minami-Rias Line and the JR East Yamada Line; however, rail operations have remained suspended since the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011. The Minami-Rias Line between Yoshihama and Kamaishi resumed on 5 April 2014.[1] Yamada line reopened on 23 March 2019 with operations transferred to the Sanriku Railway.[2] Then, it joined up with the Kita-Rias Line on one side and the Minami-Rias Line on the other, which together constitutes the entire Rias Line.[3]

Station layout

Kamaishi Station has a side platform and two island platform serving five tracks, connected to the station building by an underground passage. The station has a Midori no Madoguchi staffed ticket office.

Platforms

History

Kamaishi Station opened on 17 September 1939.[4] The Kamakishi Line began operations from 11 October 1944. The station also became a terminal station for the Miyako Line on 27 February 1972. This line was privatized on 1 April 1987, becoming the Sanriku Railway South Rias Line. Kamaishi Station was absorbed into the JR East network upon the privatization of the Japanese National Railways (JNR) on 1 April 1987. The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011 destroyed much of the tracks and many stations of the Yamada Line between Miyako and Kamaishi. In February 2012, JR East officially proposed that this section of the Yamada Line be scrapped and the right-of-way used as a bus rapid transit (BRT) route [5] but this decision was subsequently overturned and the line restored pending transfer to the Sanriku Railway. On 23 March 2019, the Yamada Line section from Miyako to Kamaishi was reopened and transferred to Sanriku Railway. This joined up with the Kita-Rias Line on one side and the Minami-Rias Line on the other which together constitutes the entire Rias Line.[6] Accordingly, this station became an intermediate station of the Rias Line.

Passenger statistics

In fiscal 2018, the JR East portion of the station was used by an average of 233 passenger daily (boarding passengers only).[7] The Sanriku Railway portion of the station was used by 113 passengers during the same period.[8]

Surrounding area

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: 2014-01-02. http://www.iwate-np.co.jp/cgi-bin/topnews.cgi?20140102_2. ja:三鉄が4月全線再開 南リアス線5日、北リアス線6日. Sanriku Railway resumed the service on April Minami-Rias Line on the 5th, Kita-Rias Line on the 6th. 岩手日報. 2014-01-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20140103035922/http://www.iwate-np.co.jp/cgi-bin/topnews.cgi?20140102_2 . 2014-01-03.
  2. News: Sanriku Railway approaches major turning point on railroad to recovery. The Japan Times Online. 2018-04-06.
  3. Web site: https://mainichi.jp/articles/20190323/dde/001/040/043000c. ja:東日本大震災 復興鉄路つながった 8年ぶり宮古-釜石、三陸鉄道に. Great East Japan Earthquake Railway have been rebuilt and connected after 8 years reconstruction between Miyako-Kamaishi, Sanriku Railway. 23 March 2019. mainichi.jp. The Mainichi Newspapers Co., Ltd.. Japan. Japanese. 24 March 2019.
  4. Book: ja: 日本国有鉄道停車場一覧 . JNR Station Directory . Japanese National Railways . 1985 . Japan . 119. 4-533-00503-9.
  5. Web site: http://www.asahi.com/travel/rail/news/TKY201202070709.html. ja:被災2路線、廃止しバス専用道提案へ JR東、岩手県に. JR East proposes to scrap two lines and convert to bus routes. 8 February 2012. The Asahi Shimbun Digital. The Asahi Shimbun Company. Japan. Japanese. https://web.archive.org/web/20120210183055/http://www.asahi.com/travel/rail/news/TKY201202070709.html. 2012-02-10. dead. 11 March 2012.
  6. Web site: http://www.sanrikutetsudou.com/rias-line/about/ . ja: 三陸鉄道はいま、ひとつにつながるリアス線 . Japanese. 14 June 2018.
  7. Web site: http://www.jreast.co.jp/passenger/2018_08.html. ja: 各駅の乗車人員 (2018年度). Station passenger figures (Fiscal 2018). 2019. East Japan Railway Company. Japan. Japanese. 11 May 2020.
  8. https://www.city.kamaishi.iwate.jp/docs/2020040800079/file_contents/10_unnyu.pdf Kamaishi City official statistics(2018)