is the main international passenger

pier Seaside pleasure pier in England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century. A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of water and usually juts out ...

at the

Port of Yokohama The is operated by the Port and Harbor Bureau of the City of Yokohama in Japan. It opens onto Tokyo Bay. The port is located at a latitude of 35.27–00°N and a longitude of 139.38–46°E. To the south lies the Port of Yokosuka; to the nor ...

, located in

Naka Naka may refer to: Places in Japan * Naka, Hyōgo, a former town in Hyōgo Prefecture * Naka, Ibaraki, a city in Ibaraki Prefecture * Naka, Tokushima, a town in Tokushima Prefecture * Naka District, Ibaraki, a district in Ibaraki Prefecture * Nak ...

Ward,

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of ...

, Japan. Ōsanbashi is the oldest pier in Yokohama, originally constructed between 1889 and 1896. Major

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours know ...

s such as the

Queen Elizabeth 2 ''Queen Elizabeth 2'' (''QE2'') is a retired British ocean liner converted into a floating hotel. Originally built for the Cunard Line, the ship, named as the second ship named ''Queen Elizabeth'', was operated by Cunard as both a transatlanti ...

were at one time embarked here, although 90,000 GWT ships such as

MS Queen Elizabeth MS ''Queen Elizabeth'' (QE) is a cruise ship of the operated by the Cunard Line. The design is a heavily modified form factor compared to earlier ships of the same class, and slightly larger than , at . This is due to a more vertical stern, ...

are often obliged to use nearby container terminals owing to their enormous size. The pier is also known as one of the best places to see the Yokohama Three Towers (The King, Queen and the Jack)

History

The Port of Yokohama was opened in 1859 as a direct result of the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce, and the Ansei Treaties signed between the

Tokugawa Shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in ...

and the governments of the United States, Great Britain, France, The Netherlands and Russia. Yokohama grew rapidly as a

treaty port Treaty ports (; ja, 条約港) were the port cities in China and Japan that were opened to foreign trade mainly by the unequal treaties forced upon them by Western powers, as well as cities in Korea opened up similarly by the Japanese Empire. ...

and commercial center due to its proximity to Tokyo, natural deep water harbour and protection from strong winds by the Honmoku bluff. Initially the port only offered two small stone

wharf A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more Berth (moorings), berths ...

s for visiting ships, built on the current site of the modern Ōsanbashi Pier. The two wharfs, known as the French and English Hatoba, were too shallow for the ocean going ships to dock, and so

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels. ...

s were used to carry passengers and freight to and from the ships in the outer harbour. In 1894, the Japanese government provided funding for an extended steel pier to replace the English Hatoba. Designed by British engineer, Henry Spencer Palmer, the new pier was able to accommodate up to four ships simultaneously. Although the pier was repaired and enlarged several times, it survived the 1923

Great Kantō earthquake Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness Greatness is a concept of a state of superior (hierarchy), superiority affecting a person or wikt:entity, object in a par ...

, and the bombing raids of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

largely intact. During the occupation the pier was renamed South Pier and remained under occupation forces control until 1952. In 1964, a reconstruction of Ōsanbashi Passenger Terminal was completed in time before the

1964 Tokyo Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this hon ...

Current pier

To meet modern demands, Ōsanbashi Pier was again reconstructed between 1988 and 2002. The newly reconstructed passenger terminal is named the ''Yokohama International Passenger Terminal'', designed by Foreign Office Architects ( Alejandro Zaera-Polo and Farshid Moussavi), the pier was the subject of a major international design competition attracting over 660 entries. The new pier can accommodate up to four 30,000-ton class ships or two 70,000-ton class ships at the same time. The departure/arrival lobby, ticketing booth, customs, immigration, large multipurpose hall, shops and cafe are all on the 2nd floor of this terminal. There is a parking facility on the 1st floor, and an extensive, gently curving observation deck with planted grass areas, open to the public on the rooftop. The Port and City of Yokohama developed other renovation and construction projects in the waterfront area, such as the Minato Mirai 21 project, in this time frame.

Notes

References

* Sakamoto, Tomoko. ''The Yokohama Project''. Actar (March 2003).

External links

Ōsanbashi Pier
(Port and Harbor Bureau, City of Yokohama)
History of the Port of Yokohama
(Port and Harbor Bureau, City of Yokohama)
JapaneseEnglish
Ōsanbashi Yokohama International Passenger Terminal {{DEFAULTSORT:Osanbashi Pier Buildings and structures in Yokohama Piers in Japan Tourist attractions in Yokohama

History

Current pier

See also

Notes

References

External links