Shigaraki Station 信楽駅 |
Third sector lines like the closed Miki Railway or its neighbor the Hojo Railway are former JR lines that were slated for closure after the split up and privatization of Japan National Railways in the late 1980's. Like the two lines mentioned above municipalities ended up buying and running the lines instead of letting them die. Some like Miki Railway have eventually proven to be too much of a drain on the local coffers and ended up closing.
The Shigaraki Kogen Railway or KTR has stayed in operation since being jointly bought by the city and prefecture in which it runs. Thankfully KTR allows access to a touristy area based around the local pottery industry adding to its ridership.
Looking down the line to Shigaraki from near Kibukawa Station |
Matching the areas fame for pottery KTR sells a clay tablet ticket that I didn't have the chance to buy since I had already paid for my paper ticket. I'm not the kind of guy to pay for a ticket twice. Maybe next time. It would make a great addition to my office wall.
Shigaraki Station 信楽駅 |
KTR is also infamous for a fatal accident that occurred along the line in 1991 killing 42 people and injuring 614 others. One of Japan's deadliest railway accidents.