Ichibata Electric Railway: Working Hand in Hand with the Region

In July 2022, Ichibata Electric Railway, a private railway company which runs in Shimane Prefecture, celebrated its 110th anniversary.

The railway company planned this event to get kids interested in trains through hands-on experience.

At this unique event, nine children enjoyed activities such as washing a train car and riding a draisine used to maintain the line.

In today's program, we take a look at Ichibata Electric Railway, a vital service operating in the region.

Ichibata Electric Railway consists of two lines.

The 33.9km Kita Matsue Line connects Dentetsu-Izumoshi Station in Izumo City to Matsue Shinjiko-Onsen Station in Matsue City.

The 8.3km Taisha Line runs between Kawato and Izumotaisha-Mae Stations.

Running along the scenic north shore of Lake Shinji, Ichibata Electric Railway is an essential railway for local residents

as well as tourists visiting popular attractions along the line.

The most popular of these attractions is the Izumo Taisha Shine.

It's said to be one of the oldest shrines in Japan.

The main shrine building was built in 1744.

Around 2 million people visit the shrine every year.

This is Izumotaisha-Mae Station - the closest station to Izumo Taisha Shrine.

The station, a popular tourist spot with its impressive semicircular roof and stained-glass windows, was built in 1930.

It was also the first station building to be designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Japan.

The station is also a popular tourist spot.

Ichibata Electric Railway started service in 1912.

The company name was derived from the fact that the line connects Izumo City to "Ichibata Yakushi Temple."

The entire line was electrified in 1930 and continued to operate until about 1960.

As the roads along the railway improved, more and more people opted to drive causing ridership to decline.

Subsequently, the company has been in deficit since 1966.

The business wasn't doing well, so in 1972, it was
announced that the railway would be discontinued.

But local residents were against that idea.

In 1973, the local governments,
along with Shimane Prefecture, established the "Ichibata Electric Train
Support Council."

Through the council, we received financial
assistance to compensate for the deficit.

Initially, the deficit was covered by Shimane Prefecture and local governments along the line.

However, the aging facilities endangered the safety of the railway, so from 2006, the focus shifted to improving the railway's facilities.

We support the railway by covering costs
related to facilities and equipment such as rails and sleepers
as well as the trains.

Thanks to this support, important infrastructure was able to be maintained, reducing service disruptions and improving safety against disasters.

Since 2016, Ichibata Electric Railway has used support funds from local governments to upgrade four aging cars.

The new Series 7000 trains are the first new vehicles built for Ichibata Electric Railway in 86 years.

The train's base was manufactured by JR Shikoku, while the electrical equipment was designed by JR West to reduce manufacturing costs.

The seats are a combination of box and bench seats to accommodate weekday commuters and tourists on weekends.

In the 15 years between 2006 and 2021, local government support totaled around 6 billion yen.

Working with the local governments, Ichibata Electric Railway has been working on streamlining its business and making its operation more efficient.

Now, only 5 of our 26 stations are staffed.

We also reassigned the signaling staff
at each station, replacing them with a centralized train control system that
controls all of the trains from one place.

We're now operating with the minimum
number of employees necessary.

While passenger numbers declined over the past few years due to the pandemic, the company maintained the number of trains in service.

In challenging times, you really want
more passengers riding the train but we didn't want to inconvenience
our passengers

so instead, we decided to increase
the number of services.

In addition, in October 2022, a surprising revision to the timetable saw some weekday daytime conventional trains change to express trains to shorten travel times.

While it's costly, the railway is
vital to our daily lives.

Without the council's support, we wouldn't have
such a crucial means of transportation.

I'm glad the trains run during the snowy
season so I can get to school on time.

This survey taken in 2021 shows an increase of "satisfied" passengers in a number of areas, such as the number of services, travel times, station and vehicle safety, vehicle comfort, compared to a survey taken in 2015.

The passengers can see the
result of our support in the upgraded equipment and the
improved comfort and safety.

In addition to government aid, support from local residents has also been growing along the train line.

This is the unstaffed Matsue Vogel Park Station.

To show their appreciation for Ichibata Electric Railway - the railway they use everyday, students from a local special high school clean the waiting room.

They carefully clean, removing cobwebs on the ceiling and polishing the floors and windows.

I want to make it even cleaner so that
people can feel comfortable using it.

Cleaning each station is a big job,
so we appreciate the help.

So Ichibata Electric Railway increased the number of express trains instead of decreasing them which we've seen a lot during the pandemic

but I think what's really good about this idea is that passengers knew they can always rely on their railway to bring them to school and work right?

That's right.

Last year, I myself had a chance to ride the Ichibata Electric Railway.

I felt that trains were really new and clean and also the infrastructure is fairly well maintained.

I've seen one particular section along the line using welded rails.

I think this is a rare feature for the railway like the Ichibata in Japan.

And I think this is all thanks to the supports from the local governments.

So in this program we've seen a lot of local governments who manage railway infrastructure.

So in this situation, is it like vertical separation?

It's similar but slightly different.

The vertical separation is the scheme where the public, in many cases the local governments own the infrastructure while the private company will do the operation

over that infrastructure and that is the vertical separation.

Ok, so what's the difference in this situation?

Well, in the case of Ichibata Electric Railway, the company still exists and owns the infrastructure and there is the compensation from tax payers money over the expenses

such as the introduction of new cars or heavy maintenance of the tracks and so on and so forth.

So the local government believes that Ichibata Railway can do the thing but they support them financially.

Yes, that's right.

Maintaining passenger numbers is important but also increasing passenger numbers and Ichibata Electric Railway has some great ideas.

Let's have a look.

Getting ideas from its employees, Ichibata Electric Railway has been running various event trains.

The "Beer Train", which runs every summer, started ten years ago.

Departing in the evening, the train goes on a two-hour all-you-can-drink beer journey.

On the "Japanese Sweets Train" passengers can enjoy matcha green tea and Japanese sweets.

This event is run in cooperation with a local tea store and a sweets shop.

The spookily decorated "Halloween Train" runs throughout October.

The event trains were very popular, however, in 2020 service was suspended due to the pandemic.

In response, the company created the "Mystery Train event," a socially distanced event using the train.

At this event, participants follow instructions in a game book they get at the departure station and use their smartphones to solve puzzles hidden along the line during the ride.

This is the Yasukawa Family.

They are taking part in the Mystery Train event because their daughter likes solving puzzles.

Exit the station and go left to find a small park.

First, they make their way to a preserved train by the station.

Here, they use their phones to get clues and find the answer on the information board.

Following the instructions, they get on the train.

They get off at a station and head to where the next clue is located.

They arrive at a preschool where an old train is preserved.

The picture on the train's front glass is the clue.

Other participants arrive and start trying to solve the puzzle.

I'm going to push send.

Yes, we got it right!

Next, it says we have to get on the train again.

This event, which saw participants visit six locations along the line while solving puzzles, was held from November to January, and lead to an increase in one-day ticket sales.

This station is the goal.

Upon solving the last puzzle and opening the treasure box in the waiting room, the participants are rewarded with a postcard and a file holder.

We did it!

Some of the puzzles were difficult,
but we had fun solving them!

We enjoyed riding the train and walking around
the city while searching for the puzzles.

We are no longer compensated for any deficit
incurred, so we had to put our heads together to come up with ways to attract passengers
and increase revenue.

One of Ichibata Electric Railway's most popular attractions is the "hands-on" train operation event.

This event has been held every weekend at the Unshu-Hirata Station Yard Since 2010.

The train used is a Dehani Type 50, which was manufactured in 1929.

In commercial operation until 2009, it's the oldest train in running condition in Japan.

This popular train is also a symbol of Ichibata Electric Railway.

On this day, siblings from an elementary school in Tokyo are participating for the first time.

Beginners first take a 30-minute course in the training room to learn the basics of driving and braking.

After training, they get onboard, put on the driver's uniform and cap, and head to the driver's cab.

Now, it's time to try the driving experience.

Clear in the front. Off we go!

The participants drive up and back twice on a 120m section of the dedicated track inside the station yard.

At the end, the running time is recorded and stopping position is measured.

That was hard!

On this day, many of the participants have come from far off places such as Tokyo, having driven the train dozens of times before.

31.21 seconds.

Just missed.

No longer satisfied with simply driving the train, they work on their technique just like professional drivers.

You're off by 10.5 cm.

One participant among them has driven the train 1,600 times.

Mr. Masuda Yoshihiro used to work for a trading company in Osaka.

Hooked on the driving experience, he moved to the area after he retired four years ago.

Since then, he has come to drive the train every week.

The train is 93 years old, so
everything is done manually.

From start to finish, it all comes down to skill.

That's what makes it so challenging and fun.

In 2020, Ichibata Electric Railway produced a children's picture book.

The main character is living version of the "Dehani Type 50," used for hands-on driving experience.

Part of a series, there have been three volumes of the picture book so far.

The idea behind the books came from staff members hoping to increase the number of future Ichibata Electric Railway fans.

Today, staff from the local design company that produced the picture book are meeting at the headquarters of Ichibata Electric Railway to discuss the next project.

The fourth book is about the train interacting with the people along the line during the pandemic.

I made the books to introduce Ichibata Electric
Railway to the children in the area.

I hope they come to associate the train
with fond memories of their hometown.

The Ichibata Electric Railway picture books are donated to kindergartens and preschools in Matsue and Izumo cities where the train operates.

This preschool was also one of the locations of the mystery train event.

"I enjoy driving with all the
townspeople onboard."

"I'm sure everyone is waiting for me."

The preschool teacher reads the picture book to the children.

They are onboard a train stored in the school yard.

The preschool acquired the train in 2001 before it was scrapped by Ichibata Electric Railway.

I love that it's a train, but the fact that it used to run
in the local area makes it even more meaningful.

To help with their development,
we wanted the children to have something they could go inside,
touch, and feel.

Well no wonder passenger satisfaction is so high for Ichibata Electric Railway, they have so many great ideas.

The mystery tour but especially the driving experience looked so exciting.

I would love to do it! We should go!

Yes, I think so.

I like to do that myself one day but one thing to point out is that the vehicle is really old that means the operation is not straight forward as you might think.

With that lever?

For example that lever for the brake system.

It's not the "jolt the lever" and that's it kind of thing.

You have to do a much more complicated operation just to apply the brake so it's difficult but still I would like to do it one day.

I heard that though once you start, you cannot stop right?

You might get too excited come back many many times.

But also that picture book idea, that was very interesting to bring the love of the local train closer to the next generation.

That's right.

That's also an important move because the future of these kind of railways depends very much on the collective desire of the people living nearby.

So from that point of view, drawing the attention of the younger generation in that kind of ways is a actually very good idea.

Yea, I'm looking forward to seeing what new and creative ideas they will come up with next.

Railway Topics.

On January 10th, a ceremony was held at Minamiaso Railway in Kumamoto Prefecture to pray for the safety and to celebrate the completion of a new train.

One section of the line is still out of service after being severely damaged by the Kumamoto earthquake seven years ago.

Now, with restoration of the line underway, the company decided to renew its aging trains.

Operation is scheduled to resume this summer.

The new train is white with blue and green wavy lines designed to represent the scenery along the line.

Inside, long bench seats stretch out down the length of each car.

The new train is also more universally accessible.

We'd love to see local residents and visitors from across
Japan and overseas come to enjoy our new train.

We hope they have a fun trip!

After the ceremony, a test run was held, with the new train running along the majestic mountains of Aso.

On January 18, JR West held a press event, revealing their new train.

It will be used as a rapid commuter train running between Osaka and neighboring cities.

Called the "A-Seat," this new vehicle is a reserved-seat-only train.

There are no hand straps as the train was designed for seated passengers only.

Each seat reclines and is equipped with a table and an outlet for charging.

There is also a large luggage area, and security cameras have been installed for peace of mind.

The train will make its debut in March this year.