Photo/Illutration A bridge section of a train line run by Hakone Tozan Railway Co. remains collapsed in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Oct. 14. (Eiichi Murano)

Damage from Typhoon No. 19 continues to hamper transportation networks at popular tourist sites in Hakone and Nikko ahead of the autumn foliage season.

Services on Hakone Tozan Railway Co.’s line connecting Hakone-Yumoto Station and Gora Station in Kanagawa Prefecture have been suspended since the storm blew through the area over the weekend.

“It will be difficult to restore the entire line within this year,” an official of the company said.

Landslides swept part of a bridge into a ravine between Miyanoshita Station and Kowakudani Station.

The railway operator said that in addition to rebuilding the bridge and restoring the tracks, it needs to strengthen the slope above the bridge to prevent another landslide.

It will consider using buses between Hakone-Yumoto and Gora stations to secure tourism routes from Odawara to the popular Owakudani area.

In Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture, an autumn festival is scheduled for Oct. 16-17 at the Nikko Toshogu shrine, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Around 47,000 tourists attended the festival last year.

Tobu Railway Co. said on Oct. 16 that operations between Kurihashi Station and Tochigi Station on the Tobu Nikko Line will be suspended until Oct. 18 because of typhoon damage.

It also said that services between Shin-Kanuma Station and Shimo-Imaichi Station on the Tobu Nikko Line will restart on Oct. 25. Banks on that section in Kanuma, Tochigi Prefecture, collapsed in the typhoon.

“The train suspension in the tourism season is a serious setback,” said Hiromitsu Tanaka, Nikko city’s division chief of tourism and economics. “We want an early restoration.”