is a passenger

train station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing suc ...

located in the city of

Karatsu is a city located in Saga Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. Its name, formed from the Japanese word roots 唐 ''kara'' (China, or continental East Asia in general), and 津 ''tsu'' (port), signifies its historical importance as an ancie ...

Saga Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of roughly 780,000 and has a geographic area of . Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasaki Prefect ...

, Japan. It is operated by

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan. It formerly operated the Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait be ...

Lines

The station is served by the

Karatsu Line The is a regional railway line in Saga Prefecture, Japan, owned and operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). It connects in Saga, Saga, Saga City to in Karatsu, Saga, Karatsu City, both in Saga Prefecture, Japan. The line was originally ...

and is located 32.9 km from the starting point of the line at . The station is also the starting point for the western section of the Chikuhi Line to . Trains of the

Chikuhi Line The is a railway line in Kyushu, Japan, connecting Meinohama Station in Fukuoka, Fukuoka (and via a subway through service, Fukuoka itself) to Karatsu Station in Karatsu, Saga, and from Yamamoto Station in Karatsu to Imari Station in Imari, ...

use the Karatsu Line tracks from to here before rejoining the Chikuhi Line track towards Imari.

Station layout

The station consists of a

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, ...

and an

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 ...

serving three tracks at grade with two sidings branching off track 1. The station building is an old timber structure of traditional Japanese design with a double tiled roof. It is unstaffed and serves only to house a waiting room and an automatic ticket vending machine. Access to the island platform is by means of a level crossing with steps.

Platforms

History

On 1 December 1898, the private Karatsu Kogyo Railway opened the station as the southern terminus of a track which it had built down the west bank of the Matsuura River from Miyoken (now ). Yamamoto became a through-station on 13 June 1899 when the track was extended to . On 23 February 1902, the company, now renamed the Karatsu Railway, merged with the

Kyushu Railway was a company that built and operated railways in Kyushu, one of four main islands of Japan. Most of its lines came under the control of Japanese Government Railways following nationalization in 1907, and many are now operated by Kyushu Railway ...

. When the Kyushu Railway was nationalized on 1 July 1907,

Japanese Government Railways The Japanese Government Railways (JGR) was the national rail transport, railway system directly operated by the until 1949. It was a predecessor of Japanese National Railways and the later Japan Railways Group. Name The English name "Japanese ...

(JGR) took over control of the station. On 12 October 1909, the line which served the station was designated the Karatsu Line. The private Kitakyushu Railway, which had a track between and by 1926 also expanded southwards a separate, parallel route down the east bank of the Matsuura River, establishing its southern terminus at Yamamoto on 20 June 1929. By 1935, the track had been extended west from Yamamoto to . The Kitakyushi Railway was nationalised on 1 October 1937 and JGR, now in control, designated the track from Higashi-Karatsu through Yamamoto to Imari as part of the

. For many years thereafter, Yamamoto was the only transfer station between the Karatsu and Chikuhi Line. On 22 March 1983, a new route for the Chikuhi Line was opened, with Highashi-Karatsu relocated and a through-track built across the Matsuura River from there via to Karatsu. The stretch of track from Higashi-Karatsu down the east bank of the Matsuura River was closed. Chikuhi Line trains now used the Karatsu Line track down the west bank from Karatsu to reach Yamamoto before rejoining the western section of Chikuhi Line to Imari. With the privatization of

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), the successor of JGR, on 1 April 1987, control of the station passed to JR Kyushu. Yamamoto was also the terminal for a number of branch lines which have since closed. A branch to Ōchitankō opened in 1905 for freight closed in 1978. Another freight line to Kanokuchi opened in 1909 and closed in 1912. A branch to Kishitake opened in 1912 and closed in 1971.

Passenger statistics

In fiscal 2020, the station was used by an average of 254 passengers daily (boarding passengers only), and it ranked 297th among the busiest stations of JR Kyushu.>

Surrounding area

*Karatsu Technical High School *Saga Prefectural Hokubu School for the Handicapped * Japan National Route 203

References

External links

Yamamoto Station (JR Kyushu)
{{Chikuhi Line Railway stations in Saga Prefecture Karatsu Line Chikuhi Line Railway stations in Japan opened in 1898 Karatsu, Saga