Tsugaru Strait with Kaikyo Line and stations

was a railway station on the Kaikyo Line in

Fukushima, Hokkaido is a town located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. As of September 2016, the town has an estimated population of 4,390, and a density of 23 persons per km2. The total area is 187.23 km2. Economics Industries in the town include s ...

, Japan, operated by

Hokkaido Railway Company The is one of the constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group), and is often referred to using its official abbreviation of . It operates intercity and local rail services in Hokkaido, Japan. The company introduced Kitaca, a sm ...

(JR Hokkaido). The station was underground and was located within the

Seikan Tunnel The Seikan Tunnel ( ja, 青函トンネル, or , ), is a dual-gauge railway tunnel in Japan, with a portion under the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait, which separates Aomori Prefecture on the main Japanese island of Honshu from the northern isla ...

under the

Tsugaru Strait The is a strait between Honshu and Hokkaido in northern Japan connecting the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. It was named after the western part of Aomori Prefecture. The Seikan Tunnel passes under it at its narrowest point 12.1 miles (1 ...

linking the main Japanese island of

Honshu , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separ ...

with the northern island of

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

. The station was located below sea level, making it the deepest underground station in the world.

Overview

One of two stations located within the Seikan Tunnel, along with

Tappi-Kaitei Station was a railway station on the Kaikyo Line in Sotogahama, Aomori, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). The station is located within the Seikan Tunnel below the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait linking the main Japanese island o ...

, it served as an emergency escape point, and this role has not changed after its closure as a passenger station. By segmenting the undersea tunnel, in the event of a fire or other disaster, the stations provide safety equivalent to that of a much shorter tunnel. The effectiveness of the escape shafts located at the emergency stations is enhanced by exhaust fans that suck up smoke, television cameras to route passengers to safety, thermal (infrared) fire alarm systems, and water spray nozzles. Previously, the station contained a museum detailing the history and function of the tunnel and could be visited on special sightseeing tours. However, while Tappi-Kaitei remained as a museum until 2013, Yoshioka-Kaitei was closed to regular services on March 17, 2006 to make way for

Hokkaido Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line that links up with the Tōhoku Shinkansen in northern Aomori Prefecture in Honshu and continues on into the interior of Hokkaido through the undersea Seikan Tunnel. Construction started in May ...

preparations. A special

781 series The was an AC electric multiple unit (EMU) train type formerly operated by Japanese National Railways (JNR) and later Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) on limited express services in Hokkaido, Japan, between 1980 and 2007. Operations * ...

Doraemon ''Doraemon'' ( ja, ドラえもん ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujiko F. Fujio. The manga was first serialized in December 1969, with List of Doraemon chapters, its 1,345 individual chapters compiled into 45 ' ...

''-themed train then started running on July 15, 2006 to the station, which staged a exhibition. This service continued until August 27, 2006, when the station was shut down and used as storage space for Hokkaido Shinkansen building materials.

History

The station opened on March 13, 1988, along with the Kaikyo Line. From March 17, 2006, regular services stopped calling at this station to make way for

construction work, and on August 27, 2006, the special Doraemon-themed train also made its final stop at the station. The station formally closed as of the end of March 14, 2014.

References

{{Reflist

External links

"An undersea station tour guide"
Railway stations in Japan opened in 1988 Railway stations in Hokkaido Prefecture Seikan Tunnel Stations of Hokkaido Railway Company Tsugaru-Kaikyō Line Railway stations closed in 2014 Defunct railway stations in Japan 2014 disestablishments in Japan

Overview

History

See also

References

External links