By KATSUMI MITSUGI/ Staff Writer
March 31, 2020 at 07:00 JST
Fujikyu Railway’s Shimoyoshida Station in Fuji-Yoshida, Yamanashi Prefecture, is sub named Chureito Pagoda Station. (Provided by Fuji Kyuko Co.)
FUJI-YOSHIDA, Yamanashi Prefecture--Fuji Kyuko Co., operator of the Fujikyu Railway, gave Shimoyoshida Station an English sub name--Chureito Pagoda Station--in hopes that visitors from abroad will feel more at home.
The moniker took effect on March 14 when the company revised the train schedule.
The station also has a Japanese sub name--Arakurayama Sengen Koen Station.
Arakurayama Sengen Koen park is about a 10-minute walk from the station.
The park is known for its picturesque views particularly in spring, when visitors can observe cherry blossoms in full bloom with the five-story Chureito pagoda in the foreground and a snow-capped Mount Fuji in the background.
The park is crowded with sightseers from home and abroad. About 470,000 people visited there in the business year ending in March 2019. Since April that year, the visitor number has already surpassed 500,000.
Fuji Kyuko hope the English sub name will help to further increase tourist numbers and revitalize the neighborhood
After the schedule revision, all express trains stop at Shimoyoshida Station, including the Fuji Excursion that operates three round trips every weekday and four on weekends and holidays.
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