Isahaya Station (諫早駅, Isahaya-eki) is a junction passenger railway station located in Eishō-chō, Isahaya, Nagasaki, Japan. It is owned by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) and the third-sector Shimabara Railway.[1][2]

Isahaya Station

諫早駅
Kyushu Railway Company
Station in July 2022
General information
LocationEishō-chō, Isahaya-shi, Nagasaki-ken 854-0072
Japan
Coordinates32°51′6.62″N 130°2′29.30″E / 32.8518389°N 130.0414722°E / 32.8518389; 130.0414722
Operated by
Line(s)
Distance
  • 100.4 km from Tosu (Nagasaki Main Line)
  • 36.2 km from Haiki (Ōmura Line)
  • 0.0 km (starting point of the Shimabara Railway Line)
Platforms2 side + 1 island platforms
Tracks5 + 2 sidings/passing loops
Connections
  • Bus interchange Bus terminal
Construction
Structure typeAt grade
AccessibleYes – platforms served by elevators
Other information
Status
Website
History
Opened27 November 1898; 126 years ago (1898-11-27)
Passengers
  • 3990 daily (JR Kyushu FY2020)
  • 977 daily (Shimabara FY2014)
Rank35th (among JR Kyushu stations)
Services
Preceding station Logo of the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). JR Kyushu Following station
Nagasaki
Terminus
Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen Shin-Ōmura
towards Takeo-Onsen
Terminus Ōmura Line Iwamatsu
towards Haiki
Nishi-Isahaya
towards Nagasaki
Nagasaki Line Higashi-Isahaya
towards Tosu
Preceding station Shimabara Railway Following station
Terminus Shimabara Railway Line Hon-Isahaya
towards Shimabarakō
Location
Isahaya Station is located in Nagasaki Prefecture
Isahaya Station
Isahaya Station
Location within Nagasaki Prefecture
Isahaya Station is located in Japan
Isahaya Station
Isahaya Station
Isahaya Station (Japan)

Lines

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The station is served by the JR Nagasaki Main Line and is located 100.4 km from the starting point of the line at Tosu. It is also the eastern terminus of the JR Ōmura Line, 36.2 km from the starting point at Haiki and the western terminus and starting point for the 43.2 kilometer third-sector Shimabara Railway Line. to Shimabarakō[3] Besides the local services on the line, the JR Kyushu rapid Seaside Liner service between Sasebo and Nagasaki stops at the station.[4] This station is also served by the Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen.

Station layout

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The station consists of three side platforms and two island platforms serving seven tracks. Track/platform 0 is a dead-end siding which juts into the platform 1 (the side platform) and is used exclusively by the trains of the Shimabara Railway Line. Platform 2 is a second side platform serving track 2 while tracks 3 and 4 are served by the island platform. Platform 11 and 12 are for the Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen and they have two side platforms. Since 18 June 2016, Isahaya has operated out of a temporary station building while the construction of a new station building is in progress. The temporary building houses a JR Kyushu ticket counter with a (Midori no Madoguchi) facility as well as a Shimabara Railway ticket window. From the station building there is direct access to platform 0 while access to the other platforms is by means of an underpass which is served by steps and elevators.[3][2][4][5]

Platforms

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This station has a side platform for the Shimabara Railway line. The JR Kyushu has 2 island platform serving four tracks. The Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen has 2 side platforms serving two tracks, totaling to 7 tracks at this station.

0 Shimabara Railway Line for Hon-Isahaya, Shimabara, Shimabarakō
1 Limited express Kamome for Urakami and Nagasaki
Rapid Seaside Liner for Kikitsu, Urakami, and Nagasaki
Nagasaki Main Line for Kikitsu, Ichinuno (Nagayo), Urakami, and Nagasaki
2・3 Nagasaki Main Line for Ichinuno(Nagayo), Nagasaki, Yue, Kōhoku, and Tosu
Ōmura Line for Ōmura, Haiki, Sasebo
4 Limited express Kamome for Kōhoku, Tosu, Hakata
Express Seaside Liner for Ōmura, Haiki, and Sasebo
Nagasaki Main Line for Yue, Kōhoku, and Tosu
Ōmura Line for Ōmura, Haiki, and Sasebo
11   Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen for Shin-Omura, Takeo-Onsen
12   Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen for Nagasaki

History

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The private Kyushu Railway, had opened a track from Tosu to Saga by 5 May 1895, and thereafter expanding southwards in phases, as part of the construction of a line to Nagasaki. Separately, a track was laid from Urakami (then known as Nagasaki) north to Nagayo, which opened on 22 July 1897 as the terminus. On 27 November 1898 a link up was achieved with the track from Tosu which had expanded south to Ōmura and Nagayo, allowing through traffic from Tosu to Nagasaki. Isahaya was opened on the same day as an intermediate station on the track between Ōmura and Nagayo.[6][7]

When the Kyushu Railway was nationalized on 1 July 1907, Japanese Government Railways (JGR) took over control of the station. On 12 October 1909, track from Tosu through Haiki, Ōmura, Isahaya, Nagayo to Nagasaki was designated the Nagasaki Main Line.[6]

On 21 August 1911, the Shimabara Railway Line from Isahaya to Hon-Isahaya was opened.[8]

On 24 March 1934, a track was opened from Isahaya to Yue, known as the Ariake Nishi, as part of the development of an alternative route for the Nagasaki Main Line along the coast of the Ariake Sea. By 1 December 1934, a link up was achieved between the Ariake Nishi Line at Yue and the Ariake Higashi Line which had been extended south from Hizen-Yamaguchi to Tara. The Ariake Nishi and Ariake Higashi Lines were then designated as part of the Nagasaki Main Line. The line from Haiki to Isahaya was separated to become the Ōmura Line.[6][9]

With the privatization of Japanese National Railways (JNR), the successor of JGR, on 1 April 1987, control of the station passed to JR Kyushu.[7]

In June 2016, work began on the construction of a new station building at Isahaya. The old station building, a timber structure in western style built in 1935, was noted for its role as a receiving station for relief trains carrying the injured from the atomic bomb at Nagasaki. This would be replaced by a new building scheduled to be completed in 2020, in time for the commencement of Shinkansen services to the station.[10][11]

The Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen opened for service on 23 September 2022.

Passenger statistics

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In fiscal 2020, the JR station was used by an average of 3,990 passengers daily (boarding passengers only), and it ranked 39th among the busiest stations of JR Kyushu.[12]

For the Shimabara Railway station, in fiscal 2014, there were a total of 356,467 boarding passengers, given a daily average of 977 passengers.[13]

Surrounding area

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  • Bus terminal for Nagasaki Kenei Bus and Shimabara Railway Bus
  • Nagasaki Prefectural Isahaya Commercial High School
  • Chinzei Gakuin University
  • Chinzei Gakuin High School

References

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  1. ^ "JR Kyushu Route Map" (PDF). JR Kyushu. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  2. ^ a b "諫早" [Isahaya]. hacchi-no-he.net. Retrieved 1 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5巻 長崎 佐賀 エリア [Japan Railways Illustrated. Shikoku and Kyushu. All lines, all stations, all track layouts. Volume 5 Nagasaki Saga area] (in Japanese). Kodansha. pp. 39, 67, 73. ISBN 9784062951647.
  4. ^ a b "諫早" [Isahaya]. JR Kyushu official station website. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  5. ^ "諫早駅 仮駅舎移転のお知らせ" [Isahaya Station Notice of relocation to temporary station building]. Shimabara City official website. 27 June 2016. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  6. ^ a b c 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. I. Tokyo: JTB Corporation. pp. 222–3. ISBN 4-533-02980-9.
  7. ^ a b 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. pp. 715–6. ISBN 4-533-02980-9.
  8. ^ Terada, Hirokazu (19 January 2013). データブック日本の私鉄 [Databook: Japan's Private Railways] (in Japanese). Japan: Neko Publishing. pp. 184, 311. ISBN 978-4-7770-1336-4.
  9. ^ 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. I. Tokyo: JTB Corporation. p. 227. ISBN 4-533-02980-9.
  10. ^ "九州新幹線 ご苦労さま、諫早駅舎 被爆者救援、大水害…苦難の歴史見守る 開業に向け、建て替え工事あす開始" [Kyushu Shinkansen. Well done, Isahaya Station. Helper to atomic blast and flood victims, witness to a history of suffering. Rebuilding work starts tomorrow.]. Mainichi Shimbun website. 17 June 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  11. ^ "諫早駅再開発ビル 起工 2020年度完成、新幹線効果に期待" [Isahaya Station Redevelopment Work Begun. Completion 2020. Shinkansen effect anticipated.]. Mainichi Shimbun website. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  12. ^ "駅別乗車人員上位300駅(2020年度)" (PDF). Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  13. ^ "第63版(平成28年)長崎県統計年鑑" [Nagasaki Prefecture Statistics Yearbook 63rd Edition 2016]. Nagasaki Prefectural Government website. Retrieved 16 March 2018. See table at section under Transportation and Communications.
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