Tateno Station (立野駅, Takeno-eki) is a railway station in Minamiaso, Kumamoto, Japan. It is jointly operated by JR Kyushu and the Minami Aso Railway and is a transfer station between the JR Kyushu Hōhi Main Line and the Minami Aso Takamori Line.[1][2] The station is also noted for the three-stage switchback that trains need to execute in order to proceed to Akamizu, the next station on the Hōhi Main Line.

Tateno Station 立野駅
JR Tateno Station in 2006
General information
Location	Japan
Coordinates	32°52′40″N 130°57′55″E
Operated by	JR Kyushu Minami Aso Railway
Line(s)	■ Hōhi Main Line ■ Minamiaso Railway Takamori Line
Distance	27.2 km from Kumamoto (Hōhi Main Line) 0.0 km (starting point of the Minami Aso Takamori Line)
Platforms	2 island platforms
Tracks	3 + several sidings
Construction
Structure type	At grade
Parking	Available at station forecourt
Other information
Status	Unstaffed, service suspended
Website	Official website
History
Opened	11 November 1916 (1916-11-11)
Location
Tateno Station Location within Japan

Lines

The station is served by the Hōhi Main Line and is located 32.3 km (20.1 mi) from the starting point of the line at Kumamoto.[3] It is also the starting point for the Takamori Line.[4]

Layout

The station consists of two island platforms serving three tracks. The station forecourt/parking area is located at a higher level than the platforms. From there, a flight of steps descends to the first island platform. The station buildings for both the Minami Aso Railway and JR Kyushu are located on this platform, which also serves the Takamori Line. From the JR Kyushu station, a level crossing gives access to the other island platform which serves two Hōhi Main Line tracks. Both station buildings are unstaffed and serve as waiting rooms. A souvenir shop is located at the station forecourt.[2][3][4][5][6]

• 
  Station forecourt. Note the souvenir shop and the stairs leading to the platform.
• 
  Base of the stairs from forecourt. To the right is the JR station entrance. To the left, the Miniami Aso station.
• 
  The Minami Aso Railway platform. The JR station is to the extreme right, outside the camera view.
• 
  The rear of the Minami Aso station building. The track in the foreground is JR's.
• 
  The second island platform, used exclusively by JR trains.
• 
  Schematic of station layout. Gray is the station forecourt. The narrow blue rectangle is the Miniami Aso platform, the thick blue is the JR Kyushu.

Adjacent stations

Switchback

Tateno station is located at an altitude of 277 metres (909 ft) while the next station, Akamizu, 7.9 km (4.9 mi) (by rail) away, is at 465 metres (1,526 ft). In order to achieve a practical gradient while ascending 190 metres (620 ft) within this distance, trains need to execute a three-stage switchback (changing directions twice) after leaving the station. Trains approaching from Seta enter Tateno from the west. They then reverse direction and exit the station westward to a point at altitude of 306 metres (1,004 ft) where they reverse direction again onto a track heading for the next station. A signboard on the Tateno Station platform gives passengers a detailed guide to this procedure. The tracks of this switchback were severely damaged by the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes.[6][7]

• 
  Aerial photo showing Tateno Station with tracks in a brown colour. The switchback can be clearly seen.

History

On 21 June 1914, Japanese Government Railways (JGR) opened the Miyaji Light Rail Line (宮地軽便線) (later the Miyagi Line) from Kumamoto eastwards to Higo-Ōzu. The line was extended eastward in phases and Tateno was opened as the new eastern terminal on 11 November 1916. It became a through-station on 25 January 1918 when the track was extended further to Miyaji. By 2 December 1928, the track at Miyaji was linked up with the Inukai Line (犬飼線), which had been extended westwards in phases from Ōita since 1914. Through-traffic was established between Kumamoto and Ōita. The two lines were merged and the entire stretch redesignated as the Hōhi Main Line. With the privatization of Japanese National Railways (JNR), the successor of JGR, on 1 April 1987, the station came under the control of JR Kyushu.[8][9]

The JR track from Higo-Ōzu to Aso was heavily damaged in the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes and service between the stations, including to Tateno has been suspended. JR Kyushu has commenced repair work, starting first with the sector from Higo-Ōzu to Tateno but has not announced a targeted completion date.[10]

See also

• Tateno Station (Saga)
• List of railway stations in Japan

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tateno Station (Kumamoto).

External links

• Tateno (JR Kyushu)(in Japanese)