Yōkoku Station (暘谷駅, Yōkoku-eki) is a passenger railway station located in the town of Hiji, Ōita Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu. [1][2]

Yōkoku Station

杵築駅
Kyushu Railway Company
Yōkoku Station in June 2016
General information
LocationHiji-cho, Hayami-gun, Oita-ken 879-1506
Japan
Coordinates33°22′12″N 131°31′48″E / 33.37000°N 131.53000°E / 33.37000; 131.53000
Operated by JR Kyushu
Line(s) Nippō Main Line
Distance108.4 km from Kokura
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeAt grade
AccessibleYes - footbridge to platform served by elevators
Other information
StatusStaffed ticket window (outsourced)
WebsiteOfficial website
History
Opened9 March 1987 (1987-03-09)
Passengers
FY2016810 daily
Rank189th (among JR Kyushu stations)
Services
Preceding station Logo of the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). JR Kyushu Following station
Bungo-Toyooka
towards Kagoshima
Nippō Main Line Hiji
towards Kokura
Location
Yōkoku Station is located in Oita Prefecture
Yōkoku Station
Yōkoku Station
Location within Oita Prefecture
Yōkoku Station is located in Japan
Yōkoku Station
Yōkoku Station
Yōkoku Station (Japan)
Map

Lines edit

The station is served by the Nippō Main Line and is located 108.4 km from the starting point of the line at Kokura.[3]

Layout edit

The station consists of two side platforms serving two tracks at grade. The station building is a modern concrete structure, built in 2016, which houses a staffed ticket window, a waiting area and various community facilities. There is also a footbridge, served by elevators, which provides access to the opposite platform as well as 24-hour free passage to the street on the other side of the station.[2][3][4][5]

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 POS machine but does not have a Midori no Madoguchi facility.[6][7]

Platforms edit

1   Nippō Main Line for Beppu and Ōita
2   Nippō Main Line for Nakatsu and Kokura

History edit

Japanese National Railways (JNR) opened the station on 9 March 1987 as an additional station on the existing track of the Nippō Main Line. With the privatization of JNR on 1 April 1987, the station came under the control of JR Kyushu.[8]

In 2016, the town of Hiji completed a major urban redevelopment project involving the station. The station was moved 100 metres to the east and a new station building was constructed, incorporated a waiting room, a community interaction area nad gallery as well as a footbridge which is available as a free passage to the street on the other side of the tracks.[4][5]

Passenger statistics edit

In fiscal 2016, the station was used by an average of 810 passengers daily (boarding passengers only), and it ranked 189th among the busiest stations of JR Kyushu.[9]

Surrounding area edit

  • Hiji Town Hall
  • Hiji Town Hiji Library
  • Hiji Town Hiji Elementary School
  • Hiji Town Hiji Junior High School

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "JR Kyushu Route Map" (PDF). JR Kyushu. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  2. ^ a b "暘谷" [Yōkoku]. hacchi-no-he.net. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  3. ^ a b Kawashima, Ryōzō (2013). 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 [Japan Railways Illustrated. Shikoku and Kyushu. All lines, all stations, all track layouts. Volume 4 Fukuoka Area] (in Japanese). Kodansha. pp. 45, 80. ISBN 9784062951630.
  4. ^ a b "暘谷駅が移転 新駅舎完成" [Yōkoku Station moved. New station building completed.]. Yomiuri Online. 18 May 2016. Archived from the original on 29 April 2018. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  5. ^ a b "踏切通らず移動 暘谷駅の自由通路と駅舎完成" [Doing without a railway crossing. Yōkoku Station free passage and station building completed]. Oita Godo Shimbun. Archived from the original on 22 April 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  6. ^ "大分支店内各駅" [Stations within the Ōita Branch]. JRTE website. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  7. ^ "暘谷" [Yōkoku Station]. jr-mars.dyndns.org. Retrieved 29 April 2018. See images of tickets sold.
  8. ^ Ishino, Tetsu; et al., eds. (1998). 停車場変遷大事典 国鉄・JR編 [Station Transition Directory – JNR/JR] (in Japanese). Vol. II. Tokyo: JTB Corporation. p. 752. ISBN 4-533-02980-9.
  9. ^ "駅別乗車人員上位300駅(平成28年度)" [Passengers embarking by station - Top 300 stations (Fiscal 2016)] (PDF). JR Kyushu. 31 July 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2018.

External links edit

  Media related to Yōkoku Station at Wikimedia Commons