is a
railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
in the city of
Tochigi,
Tochigi Prefecture
is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Tochigi Prefecture has a population of 1,897,649 (1 June 2023) and has a geographic area of 6,408 Square kilometre, km2 (2,474 Square mile, sq mi ...
, Japan, operated by the
East Japan Railway Company
The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...
(JR East).
Lines
Iwafune Station is served by the
Ryōmō Line
The is a Japanese railway line connecting Oyama, Tochigi, Oyama in Tochigi Prefecture with Maebashi, Gunma, Maebashi in Gunma Prefecture. long, the line is owned and operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The name refers to the ...
, and is located 19.3 km from the terminus of the line at
Oyama Station
is a junction railway station in the city of Oyama, Tochigi, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The station is also a freight depot for the Japan Freight Railway Company (JR Freight).
Overview
This station is the repr ...
.
Station layout
Iwafune Station has a single
island platform
An island platform (also center platform (American English) or centre platform (British English)) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway inte ...
and a single
side platform
A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platforms, ...
connected to the station building by a footbridge. The station is unattended.
Platforms
History
Iwafune Station was opened on 10 October 1889 as . It was renamed to its present ''
kanji
are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...
'' spelling on 1 March 1902. The station was absorbed into the JR East network upon the
privatization
Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...
of the
Japanese National Railways
The , abbreviated JNR or , was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987.
Network Railways
As of June 1, 1949, the date of establishment of JNR, it operated of narrow gauge () railways in all 46 pre ...
(JNR) on 1 April 1987.
The current station structure was built in 1936 as a half-timbered building with a characteristic foundation made of regional "Iwafune stone". Originally it had a station master as depicted in the anime film listed below, and a lockable waiting room. As part of a renovation and simultaneous modernization, the part of the station master's accommodation was demolished by JR East in 2006 and the rest of the building was converted into an open waiting hall. The station has been in unstaffed operation since the
Passenger statistics
In Fiscal 2011, the station was used by an average of 568 passengers daily (boarding passengers only).
Surrounding area
* Iwafune Post Office
* Iwafune Geological Museum
Film setting
In the 2007 animated film ''
5 Centimeters per Second'', Takaki and Akari see each other for the last time at this station in 4 March 1995. Twelve years later, Akari departs from this station for her wedding in Tokyo. In the manga adaption of the film, Takaki also visits this station with his girlfriend in 2007.
See also
*
List of railway stations in Japan
References
*
References
External links
*
JR East Station information
{{Ryōmō Line
Railway stations in Japan opened in 1889
Railway stations in Tochigi Prefecture
Ryōmō Line
Stations of East Japan Railway Company
Tochigi, Tochigi