Minamiaso Railway: Overcoming Disaster

Minamiaso Railway, which suffered severe damage from the Kumamoto earthquake,

causing service to be suspended on a large section of the line,

recently resumed full operation after seven years.

On July 15, many people gathered at Takamori Station,

the first stop on the line in the early hours of the morning.

I have been looking forward to riding the
first train to celebrate the restoration.

The train is departing!

At 6:00 AM, many people gather to see off the train as it heads for the newly reopened section.

The passengers enjoy themselves while taking pictures of the magnificent view from the train.

I was happy to see the entire line
from the train after all this time.

I was impressed by everyone's love
for the railway.

It feels like we've finally come out of a long tunnel.

In today's program, we are taking a look at Minamiaso Railway,

which has made a full recovery seven years and three months after the earthquake.

Minamiaso Railway runs 17.7 km between Takamori Station in Takamori Town

and Tateno Station in Minamiaso Village, in Kumamoto Prefecture, in Kyushu.

This railway has been a popular means of transportation for local residents

as well as a tourist route known for its magnificent scenery.

The railway originally began service in 1928 as part of the former Japanese National Railways.

However, in 1981 the line was considered for discontinuation as it was running at a loss.

But, in 1986, born from local residents' desire to keep the line active,

Minamiaso Railway started service as a third-sector company

funded by the local governments along the line.

After Minamiaso Railway began operation,

it became popular for the beautiful scenery along the line.

The railway's trolley train soon became its most popular attraction.

It accounted for around 42% of the company's total fare income,

supporting the operation of Minamiaso Railway.

In an effort to give each station along the line its own distinctive character,

the company created what was then said to be the longest station name in Japan.

Minami-Aso: Village Where the Water Springs, Hakusui-Kogen.

It attracted a lot of attention.

As a result of these efforts, many tourists came to visit the line,

and for a third-sector railway that took over a loss-making local line from the former Japanese National Railways,

the company's business remained relatively stable and the income from passenger fares continued to rise.

Then, in April 2016, two consecutive earthquakes struck Kumamoto,

recording a maximum magnitude of 7,

causing extensive damage to the prefecture and the surrounding areas.

Minamiaso Railway suffered severe damage along its entire line.

Landslides caused the track to collapse, and the line's tunnels and bridges were badly damaged.

The area between Tateno Station and Choyo Station,

which connects to the JR Line, was particularly affected.

Seismic activity, which caused the earthquake and subsequent landslides,

was concentrated in this area, causing significant damage.

I was surprised to see how much
the landscape had changed.

I was anxious about the future.

The train in departing!

Despite this, in July, just three months after the earthquake,

partial operation resumed on the 7.1 km section between Takamori and Nakamatsu stations,

where the damage was minimal.

However, service was reduced to about a quarter of what it was before the earthquake,

and connecting services to the Kumamoto City area were terminated.

Passenger numbers then remained at 10% to 30% of what they had been before the earthquake.

Due to the severity of the damage caused by the earthquake,

restoration initially seemed hopeless,

and it looked like Minamiaso Railway was in danger of closing.

Constructed in 1927, the historically significant Daiichi Shirakawa Bridge

rises 60 meters above the river below.

Built nearly 100 years ago, it's one of the landmarks of Minamiaso Railway.

It was also considered to be the most difficult to restore.

When the earthquake struck, the ground lifted, warping the tracks.

This, of course, meant the train could no longer cross the bridge.

Moreover, as the structure of the bridge is rare in Japan,

specialized skills were required to replace it.

Minamiaso Railway requested technical assistance

from the Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency,

which has a wealth of knowledge and expertise in railway construction.

Together, they decided to undertake a major construction project,

dismantling and reassembling the structure.

Despite the technical challenges that had to be overcome, a further issue was the cost.

The government estimated that restoration of the entire line,

including the Daiichi Shirakawa Bridge, would cost approximately 7 billion yen.

The amount Minamiaso Railway made in sales before the earthquake

around 100 million yen would hardly be enough.

However, above all else, Minamiaso Railway is an indispensable means of transportation for local residents

who use the line to commute to work and school, and to go to the hospital, etc.

Also as the largest tourism resource in the region,

the line's restoration was deemed crucial to local economy.

Many people hoped the line would
fully reopen as soon as possible.

One of the things I love about Minamiaso Railway
is the people who wave to us.

I don't think there are many railways like it.

Many locals wanted to ride the train
as soon as the line was restored.

So we wanted to restore the line quickly.

Local governments and prefectures along the line requested financial support from the national government,

and as a result of repeated discussions,

the government established a new system to support the restoration of railways damaged by major disasters.

Under this system, the national government and local municipalities bear one-half of the restoration costs,

meanwhile the railway companies are exempted from paying their share.

Since 95% of the local government's share is covered by national taxes,

the national government in effect bears 97.5% of the cost.

To be eligible for this system, the company was required to be "vertically separated."

The local government would take over management of the tracks and station buildings,

while Minamiaso Railway would operate the railway.

Full restoration of the line was completed in July 2023.

I welled up with tears the moment
I realized the train was coming.

I'm happy. I've been looking forward to it.

It'll make things easier.

I've been looking forward to this for so long.

We want to thank everyone for waiting the seven
years. We've resumed full operation at last.

When we saw the train running after so long,
we realized we'd finally made it.

A railway should endear itself to the community.
After all, that's who it's for.

Keep on running, Minamiaso Railway!

Comparing images of 1986 with images now of 2023,

it's great to see the same excitement in the locals and visitors that the train is running.

Yes indeed, and I'm really happy too.

But I thought it was rather difficult

because the part of the line that was damaged by the earthquake was actually a very vital part.

But technically speaking it was probably very difficult to repair.

Yes, especially the bridge.

I was actually surprised that they decided to restore the bridge despite the huge cost involved in it.

Yes, and that was made possible by the central government's new scheme

to subsidies the local government after the natural disaster like this.

And I think this is one of the first cases of the application of that scheme

and many railways across Japan will follow suit

after they have been damaged by the various kinds of natural disasters.

Yes let's hope that they can get the support.

Minamiaso Railway has not just been restored, but also improved.

Let's see what they did.

Kumamoto Prefecture, which is working to recover from the earthquake,

is committed to "creative reconstruction,"

which means not simply restoring things to their pre-earthquake state but making them better.

Minamiaso Railway's revival is also considered "creative reconstruction,"

as it will lead to improved access to and from Kumamoto City and the airport.

One such improvement is a direct service to JR Higo-Ozu Station in Ozu Town,

adjacent to Minamiaso Village, which runs two round trips per day.

Until now, when traveling from Kumamoto Station to Minami Aso by train,

passengers had to transfer twice, once at Higo-Ozu Station and again at Tateno Station.

A direct service from Higo Ozu Station to Minami Aso Railway

improves convenience for residents and tourists who use the line.

Furthermore, Higo-Ozu Station is close to Aso Kumamoto Airport,

making it convenient for tourists heading directly from the airport to Aso.

For this direct service, Minami Aso Railway introduced a new type of train car

equipped with a braking system that allows it to operate on the JR line.

The base of the car body features blue and green curves

inspired by the flowing rivers and mountains of the Aso region.

The interior of the train was designed to enhance the view, with darker colored seats and flooring.

The train is also wheelchair and stroller accessible.

In addition, to make things easier for foreign tourists,

information is displayed in Japanese and English.

And the in-train announcements are now made in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean.

The drivers are also doing their best to be multilingual as well!

Thank you for riding Minamiaso Railway!

The new train was introduced to coincide with the reopening of the line.

Inspired by a popular Japanese comic and animated series,

it's expected to attract more tourists to Minamiaso Railway,

as the series has many fans in Japan and overseas.

This special train is scheduled to run for about a year.

It's not only the trains that have been renewed.

Takamori Station, the first and last stop on Minamiaso Railway,

was completely rebuilt by Takamori Town.

The new station was built just down the track toward Tateno,

and the original platform was extended by about 110 meters.

The platform was extended to allow longer tourist trains to stop there in the future.

We wanted to build a station with beautiful
sunset views from a west-facing platform.

That's one thing.

We also wanted to build a unique
160m-long platform.

We kept those two things in mind
when building the station.

And on the site of the old station building,

a new community center and study space for local students,

which will also serve as a disaster prevention center, will be built.

Takamori and Tateno stations are the first and
last stations on the Minamiaso Railway line.

We rebuilt the stations to welcome tourists in a
new way. This "creative reconstruction"

coincided with the full reopening of the line.

Here in the Tateno district, Minamiaso Railway connects to the JR line at Tateno Station.

This area was so severely damaged by the Kumamoto earthquake and subsequent landslide

that the district's population decreased by around 40%.

In response, Minamiaso Village constructed a new station building,

wanting to bring the community together and to liven up the Tateno district.

The station platform is located on the first floor,

while the second floor is home to a large terrace where people can come together and interact.

In Tateno district, we want to encourage people
to interact, and come together as a village.

We also want more people to become
fans of Minami Aso.

So, we created a space that can be used for events
where locals and tourists can get together.

We want to make the area safe and attractive
to people from all walks of life.

That's something we can work on as a village.

On the same day Minamiaso Railway resumed full operation,

the Earthquake Museum "KIOKU" opened near Tateno Station.

This facility was built by Kumamoto Prefecture

to share experiences and lessons learned from the Kumamoto earthquake.

Visitors can learn about the damage caused by the earthquake, how earthquakes occur, and disaster prevention.

The Aso region has a role in teaching the lessons
learned during the Kumamoto Earthquake.

Minamiaso Railway also has a role to play,

sharing memories and lessons with
visitors who ride the train.

The people of Minamiaso and Takamori have
been working hard to promote the community

and the urban developments surrounding the railway.

I believe this is the biggest driving
force behind our efforts.

Looks like we can see an increase in tourist thanks to the better connection between the airport and Minamiaso.

Yes indeed, for any railway it's always good to have a good connection,

so from that point of view, I'm really, really glad to see the introduction of the through service.

And in the future, my hope is that they introduce more of that,

not just during the early morning, but also in the daytime and towards the evening as well.

Yeah, I agree. Now, Minamiaso is not just celebrating the full return of the train

but also full return of their tourist train.

The day after Minamiaso Railway resumed full operation,

this popular "trolley train" began running once again on the entire line.

The train runs slowly between Takamori and Tateno stations through the magnificent scenery of Aso,

one of the world's largest calderas.

The train attracts many passengers from both Japan and overseas,

who come to enjoy the mountains and nature-rich plain.

The train is also famous for its guides, who work in shifts to drive the train.

The Aso Caldera is a large crater that stretches
18km east to west and 25km north to south.

The outer ring, which is 1,000m above sea level,
has a circumference of 130km.

Calderas are found in many parts of the world,

but it's rare to see people living in one,
planting rice, and running a railway.

At each station along the way, locals welcome the passengers.

At this station...

There's a "ninja!"

Locals dressed as "ninjas" entertain the passengers,

throwing packaged snacks to the passengers and making them smile.

Here! Snacks instead of throwing stars!

The train then enters a 1km long tunnel.

Passing through the tunnel, the train comes to the Daiichi Shirakawa Bridge,

which was rebuilt after being severely damaged by the earthquake.

When the trolley train reaches the bridge, it slows down.

The people onboard take pictures and enjoy the highlight of the trolley train ride.

The trolley train is now crossing the
60m-high Daiichi Shirakawa Bridge.

This bridge was out of action for
7 years and 3 months.

Another attraction is the Tateno Dam, which is scheduled to open in the next fiscal year.

The dam will be a new tourist attraction to view from the trolley train.

After about 50 minutes on board, the train arrives at Tateno Station, the final stop.

It was fun. The scenery was something special.

I had fun.

It was my first time. I loved it, especially
the view coming out of the tunnel.

It was nice seeing the locals waving.

It felt like the whole community was involved.

The guide was interesting and I found a lot of
places I'd like to come back and visit.

My son loves trains. He wanted to
ride the trolley train.

- How was it?
- It was fun.

Good.

Many passengers have been riding regular
trains as well as the trolley train.

I'm glad the line has now fully reopened.

Minamiaso Railway is becoming
more and more popular.

I hope the trolley train, the line's most popular attraction,
will bring even more people to the railway.

I also hope people learn about Minami Aso's
rich natural environment.

Wow, watching the view from the restored bridge, without windows, that's quite a thrill.

- And then also, I love the little "ninja" appearance.
- Right.

Now we have seen the full recovery and reopening of Minamiaso Railway.

And what we want to see in the future is the full recovery and revitalization of the entire region,

including the Kumamoto prefecture after the Kumamoto earthquake.

And I think Minamiaso Railway can do something to contribute to the restoration and revitalization.

Yes, I think this is yet another great example to see the locals come together to rebuild

and restore and return the liveliness to the region thanks to the power of the railway.