THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
March 16, 2024 at 18:28 JST
The first Hokuriku Shinkansen Line run from Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture on March 16 receives a warm send-off. (Yoshiaki Arai)
An extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line connecting Kanazawa and Tsuruga in central Japan opened March 16, bringing bullet train services to Fukui Prefecture for the first time and the prospect of a desperately needed surge in tourism.
The development means Fukui is now connected by a high-speed link to Tokyo, some 300 kilometers away.
March 16 marked the first day for a travel discount program to support the Hokuriku region still reeling from the New Year’s Day magnitude-7.6 earthquake that left hundreds homeless.
A ceremony was held at Tsuruga Station to see off the first Shinkansen run bound for Tokyo early on March 16.
Among those attending was Kazuaki Hasegawa, president of West Japan Railway Co. (JR West), which operates the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line, as well as Fukui Governor Tatsuji Sugimoto.
The Kagayaki No. 502 departed at 6:11 a.m. Reserved seats for the run sold out about four minutes after tickets went on sale on Feb. 16.
After the ceremony, Hasegawa said, “We were able to make a new departure for the second stage of the Hokuriku Shinkansen. We hope it contributes to rebuilding in the region after the natural disasters as well as helping to enliven the Hokuriku region.”
Sugimoto said: “For the new service to signal reconstruction from the disasters, Fukui and Tsuruga must first become more energized. That way, it can serve as a trigger to pass on that energy to the Noto Peninsula.”
Inns in hot spring resort areas of Ishikawa and Fukui prefectures expect the extension of service will bring in more tourists. The Noto Peninsula earthquake in January resulted in many people cancelling reservations in the region.
A visitor from Tajimi, Gifu Prefecture, who was on the first train arriving in Kanazawa along with his grandchild, said he would be happy if the money he spent during his time there helped the rebuilding effort for Ishikawa Prefecture.
Similar ceremonies were held at Kanazawa and Tokyo stations.
The Hokuriku Shinkansen Line began service in 1997 between Tokyo and Nagano, before extending service to Kanazawa in 2015.
The latest extension means Tsuruga can be reached from Tokyo in as little as three hours and eight minutes, 50 minutes faster than before.
The beginning of a new service means old services must come to an end. The Thunderbird and Shirasagi limited express lines departed from Kanazawa for the last time on March 15, after 60 years of linking the Hokuriku region with Nagoya and Osaka.
The two limited express lines will now link Tsuruga with Osaka and Nagoya.
(This article was written by Tsunetaka Sato, Yoshito Asakura and Kazuhide Setoguchi.)
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