Nishikata Station

Nishikata Station 西方にしほう駅えき にしかた
Nishikata station building and footbridge in 2008
General information
Location	Nishikatacho, Satsumasendai-shi, Kagoshima-ken 899-1801 Japan
Coordinates	31.9164°N 130.22375°E / 31.9164; 130.22375
Operated by	Hisatsu Orange Railway Co., Ltd.
Line(s)	■ Hisatsu Orange Railway Line
Distance	99.6 km from Yatsushiro 3.9 km from Satsuma Ohkawa
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	1
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Other information
Station code	OR24
Website	Official website (in Japanese)
History
Opened	1 July 1922 (1922-07-01)
Original company	Japanese Government Railways
Passengers
FY2019	23
Location Nishikata Station Location within Kagoshima Prefecture Nishikata Station Nishikata Station (Japan)

Nishikata Station (西方にしほう駅えき, Nishikata-eki) is a passenger railway station located in the city of Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway.

Lines

The station is served by the Hisatsu Orange Railway Line that follows the former coastal route of the JR Kyushu Kagoshima Main Line connecting Yatsushiro and Sendai. It is located 99.6 km from the starting point of the line at Yatsushiro.

Station layout

The station consists of two side platforms and two tracks. It is unattended station. A maintenance siding is provided on the upper side. During the former JNR era, it was a staffed station with two platforms and three tracks, with a large white concrete station building, a freight siding and freight platform, and JNR official housing on both sides of the station building. During its peak in the 1970s, it was very busy, especially during summer vacation and long weekends, with beachgoers at the nearby Nishikata Beach, tourists at Kawauchi Takagi Onsen. Express trains made special stops, and several special trains were scheduled to stop at the station from the direction of Nishi-Kagoshima Station. In 1983, the station was unattended and the government housing was removed, reducing the size of the station premises. In 1988, the station building was demolished and a simple waiting room was installed. Around 2000, the center track was discontinued, leaving the station with two tracks and two platforms, which is the case today. After the center track was discontinued, the signals, overhead wires, and the points rail that crossed the main line were removed, and it was left abandoned for many years, but when it was transferred to the Hisatsu Orange Railway in March 2004, the tracks were completely removed.

Platforms

1	■ ■ Hisatsu Orange Railway	for Izumi, Minamata, and Yatsushiro
2	■ ■Hisatsu Orange Railway	for Sendai

• 
  Station sign
• 
  View of operating platform
• 
  Closer view of station with vending machines

Adjacent stations

«		Service	»
Hisatsu Orange Railway Line
Satsuma Ohkawa		–	Satsuma Taki
Rapid Express Ocean Liner Satsuma: Does not stop at this station

History

Nishikata Station was opened on 1 July 1922 as a station on the Japanese Government Railways Sendai Line, which was incorporated into the Kagoshima Main Line on 17 October 1927. With the privatization of the Japan National Railways on 1 April 1987, the station was transferred to JR Kyushu. On 13 March 2004, with the opening of the Kyushu Shinkansen, the station was transferred to the Hisatsu Orange Railway.

Passenger statistics

The average daily passenger traffic in fiscal 2019 was 23 people.

Surrounding area

• Nishikata Beach
• Japan National Route 3

See also

• List of railway stations in Japan

External links

• Media related to Nishikata Station at Wikimedia Commons
• Official Hisatsu Orange Railway site (in Japanese)
• Yahoo! Japan Transit station guide