Kitsuki Station Explained

Kitsuki Station
Native Name:杵築駅
Native Name Lang:ja
Symbol Location:jp
Symbol:jrk
Style:JR Kyushu
Address:Yasaka, Kitsuki-shi, Oita-ken 873-0015
Country:Japan
Coordinates:33.4111°N 131.5756°W
Operator: JR Kyushu
Line: Nippō Main Line
Distance:99.2 km from
Platforms:1 side + 1 island platforms
Tracks:3 + 2 sidings
Structure:At grade
Accessible:No - platforms linked by footbridge
Status:Staffed ticket window (Midori no Madoguchi) (outsourced)
Passengers:758 daily
Pass Year:FY2016
Pass Rank:195th (among JR Kyushu stations)
Map Type:Japan Oita Prefecture#Japan
Map Dot Label:Kitsuki Station
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Zoom:17

is a passenger railway station located in the city of Kitsuki, Ōita Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu.[1]

Lines

The station is served by the Nippō Main Line and is located 99.2 km from the starting point of the line at .

Layout

The station consists of a side platform and an island platform serving three tracks. The station building is a timber structure of traditional Japanese design, built to resemble a Japanese castle. It houses a staffed ticket window, a waiting area and a tourist information centre. Access to the island platform is by means of a footbridge.[2] [3] [4]

Management of the station has been outsourced to the JR Kyushu Tetsudou Eigyou Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of JR Kyushu specialising in station services. It staffs the ticket booth which is equipped with a Midori no Madoguchi facility.[5] [6]

Platforms

History

The private Kyushu Railway had, by 1909, through acquisition and its own expansion, established a track from to . The Kyushu Railway was nationalised on 1 July 1907. Japanese Government Railways (JGR), designated the track as the Hōshū Main Line on 12 October 1909 and expanded it southwards in phases, with opening as the new southern terminus on 22 March 1911. On the same day, Kitsuki was opened as an intermediate station on the new track. On 15 December 1923, the Hōshū Main Line was renamed the Nippō Main Line. With the privatization of Japanese National Railways (JNR), the successor of JGR, on 1 April 1987, the station came under the control of JR Kyushu.

In 2015, the local town tourism association opened a tourist information centre at the station, replacing a kiosk which had closed the previous year.[7]

Passenger statistics

In fiscal 2016, the station was used by an average of 758 passengers daily (boarding passengers only), and it ranked 195th among the busiest stations of JR Kyushu.[8]

Surrounding area

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: JR Kyushu Route Map. JR Kyushu. 23 February 2018.
  2. Web site: 杵築. Kitsuki. 29 April 2018. hacchi-no-he.net.
  3. Book: Kawashima, Ryōzō. ja: 図説: 日本の鉄道 四国・九州ライン 全線・全駅・全配線・第4巻 福岡エリア. 2013 . Kodansha. 9784062951630. Japan Railways Illustrated. Shikoku and Kyushu. All lines, all stations, all track layouts. Volume 4 Fukuoka Area. ja. 47, 80.
  4. Web site: 杵築. Kitsuki. 29 April 2018. Blog entry with good photographic coverage of station facilities.
  5. Web site: 大分支店内各駅. Stations within the Ōita Branch. 9 April 2018. JRTE website. 6 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190406005504/http://www.jrte.co.jp/branch/ooita.html. dead.
  6. Web site: 杵築駅. Kitsuki Station. 29 April 2018. jr-mars.dyndns.org. See images of tickets sold.
  7. Web site: 観光客と町つなぐ JR杵築駅に「案内所」. Connecting tourists and the town Information Centre at JR Kitsuki Station. Ōita Godo Shimbun website. 21 February 2015. https://archive.today/20151202180322/https://www.oita-press.co.jp/1010000000/2015/02/21/214036421. 2 December 2015. 29 April 2018. live.
  8. Web site: 駅別乗車人員上位300駅(平成28年度). Passengers embarking by station - Top 300 stations (Fiscal 2016). JR Kyushu. 31 July 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170801162701/http://www.jrkyushu.co.jp/company/info/data/pdf/2016jousya.pdf. 1 August 2017. 3 March 2018.