Liminal Abandoned Railways in Japan: 10 Real Places Where Trains No Longer Run, From Bamboo-Lined Rails to Meiji-Era Tunnels

Why disused railways feel like nowhere

A railway is built only to get from one place to another. Platforms, tunnels and bridges are not places to stay, but places to pass through. When the trains stop running, these places for passing through are left behind, with no job left to do.

Rails stretching straight ahead, sleepers laid at regular intervals, a platform where no one is waiting. Everything still has the shape of a railway, but the timetable has vanished. That feeling of something stopped halfway may be close to what people call a liminal space. Here are ten disused railways in Japan, mostly sections that have been turned into walking paths, that you can visit on foot.

Rails in a bamboo grove: the former JNR Kurayoshi Line (Tottori)

The former JNR Kurayoshi Line in Sekigane, Kurayoshi, Tottori, closed in 1985. For about 500 meters, from the site of Taikyuji Station to near the entrance of the Yamamori Tunnel, bamboo arches over the track from both sides, and rusted rails remain beneath it. The remains of a platform are still at the Taikyuji Station site, and you can walk the route freely except for the Yamamori Tunnel. It is like a green tunnel where the only sound is the rustling of bamboo leaves.

You can enter the Yamamori Tunnel only on a guided group tour or on one of the few "Walking Open Days" held each year, wearing a helmet (all of the 2026 dates are already full). Park in the free car park in front of the Sekigane Haisen-ato Tourist Information Center and walk for about 15 to 20 minutes. The land around the station site is private, and visitors are asked not to park on the shoulder of the prefectural road below.

Walking through a Meiji-era tunnel: the Ohikage Tunnel Walking Path (Yamanashi)

The Ohikage Tunnel in Katsunuma, Koshu, Yamanashi, is a Chuo Main Line tunnel that opened in 1903. It fell out of use in 1997 when a new tunnel opened alongside it, and in 2005 the former town of Katsunuma took it over from JR East and turned it into a walking path about 1.4 km long. Under the lights, you walk about 30 minutes each way along a perfectly straight passage where the brick walls, soot from steam locomotives, rails and signs remain.

It was closed from 2016 for repair work on the tunnel lining and reopened to walkers in March 2024. It is open every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., except from December 29 to January 3. Entry is free.

A brick bridge and a chain of tunnels: the Abt Road over Usui Pass (Gunma)

The Usui No. 3 Bridge in Annaka, Gunma, known as the Megane Bridge, is a brick arch bridge that came into use when the old Shin'etsu Main Line opened in 1893. It is about 91 meters long and about 31 meters above the riverbed, is said to contain about two million bricks, and is designated a national Important Cultural Property. This section, where trains climbed and descended the steep Usui Pass with the help of a cog rail, was replaced by a new line in 1963. About 6 km of the old track bed, from Yokokawa Station to Kumanotaira, is now the Abt Road walking trail, which takes you on foot through ten tunnels and across six bridges.

Kumanotaira, at the end of the trail, was built in 1893 as a stop where trains could pass each other. It later became a station, and from 1966 it served as a signal station until the Yokokawa to Karuizawa section closed in 1997. A substation built in 1937 still stands there (a national Important Cultural Property, not open inside), along with a statue of a mother and child that remembers the 50 people who died in a landslide in 1950. The Abt Road is open all year, and the tunnel lights are on from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Beyond Kumanotaira, the old track toward Karuizawa is off limits.

Rails and level crossings in the city: the former Temiya Line (Otaru, Hokkaido)

The former Temiya Line in Otaru is part of the first railway in Hokkaido, which opened between Temiya and Sapporo in 1880. Passenger trains ended in 1962 and freight in 1985, but the rails and level crossing barriers were left in place, and about 1.6 km through the city center has been turned into a walking path. Rails that no trains will ever use again run straight on between office buildings and warehouses.

At the end of the line, the Otaru Museum in Temiya preserves the "Former Temiya Railway Facilities", including an engine shed and a turntable, which are a national Important Cultural Property (admission is charged). In winter, part of the path becomes a venue for the Otaru Snow Light Path festival, and the steep steps on the Sushiya-dori side are closed for the season.

A bridge that sinks into a lake, and a station in the forest: the former JNR Shihoro Line (Kamishihoro, Hokkaido)

The Taushubetsu River Bridge, in Lake Nukabira in Kamishihoro, is a concrete arch bridge of the former JNR Shihoro Line, completed in 1937. It is 130 meters long and originally had eleven arches. It went out of use when the line was rerouted for the construction of Nukabira Dam, and today, depending on the water level of the reservoir, it emerges from winter to spring and sinks beneath the lake from summer to autumn. It crumbles a little more every year, and in April 2026 part of a side wall was again found to have collapsed. From the Taushubetsu Observation Deck along National Route 273, you can see it about 750 meters away.

At the site of Horoka Station on the same Shihoro Line, the platform and the tracks, including a set of points, still remain. In December 1978 trains between Nukabira and Tokachi-Mitsumata were replaced by buses, and the line was abolished in March 1987. The platform was registered as a national Tangible Cultural Property in 2017. Deep in the forest, a platform where no one waits and rails slowly disappearing into the grass run straight on into the trees.

A bridge that stops above a gorge: the Takachiho Railway Bridge (Miyazaki)

The Takachiho Railway Bridge in Takachiho, Miyazaki, carried the former Takachiho Railway across the deep valley of the Gokase River. At its highest point it stands 105 meters up, and it has been described as the tallest railway bridge in Japan. Typhoon No. 14 in September 2005 brought the whole Takachiho Railway to a halt, and the section including the bridge was abandoned in December 2008 without ever being restored.

Today Takachiho Amaterasu Railway runs a sightseeing vehicle, the "Grand Super Cart", on a 5.1 km round trip that takes about 30 minutes. The cart stops on the bridge, and you can look down into the gorge through the glass floor. It runs ten times a day from 9:40 a.m. to 3:40 p.m., tickets are sold on the day only, and a ride costs 2,300 yen for adults (after the April 2026 price change). It is closed on the third Thursday of each month, does not run in rain or strong wind, and when the wind is too strong to cross the bridge it turns back at Amanoiwato Station instead.

A station along a cycling road: the former Makabe Station of the Tsukuba Railway (Ibaraki)

The site of Makabe Station in Sakuragawa, Ibaraki, belonged to the Tsukuba Railway's Tsukuba Line (Tsuchiura to Iwase), which opened in 1918 and closed in 1987. The old track bed is now the Tsukuba Kasumigaura Rin Rin Road cycling route, and the station site has been turned into a rest area with toilets, benches and parking. Halfway along a straight road where bicycles now pass instead of trains, only the place that used to be a station remains, quietly.

A tunnel deep in the woods: the Otana Tunnel of the former Funaki Railway (Yamaguchi)

The Otana Tunnel in Higashi-Kibe, Ube, Yamaguchi, stands on the old track bed of the former Funaki Railway. Its stone walls are topped with a brick arch. The Funaki Railway opened in 1916 and reached Kibe in 1926, but the section between Mankura and Kibe, where this tunnel stands, was suspended during the war in 1944, and the whole line closed in 1961. About 400 meters along the old track bed from behind the former Kibe Elementary School, the portal stands quietly open among the trees.

It is dark inside with poor footing, so please only look at it from outside. There are houses nearby, and there is almost nowhere to park.

Practical notes before you go

Most of the places in this article are sections that have been turned into walking paths or trails. Not every disused railway can be walked, and outside the maintained sections the land may be private or off limits. Do not enter the old track over Usui Pass beyond Kumanotaira, the private land around the Taikyuji Station site on the Kurayoshi Line, or the deck of the Taushubetsu River Bridge. And never step onto tracks where trains still run.

Disused railways in the mountains are also home to wild animals. Kamishihoro warns that the whole town is brown bear habitat, and the forest road to the Taushubetsu River Bridge can only be entered by car or motorcycle after borrowing the key to its gate, which requires a reservation (in 2026, from April 25 to November 1, with a contribution of 2,000 yen per person; no entry on foot or by bicycle). If you want to see it up close without borrowing the key, join a local guided tour.

Where there are houses nearby, walk quietly so as not to disturb the people who live there, and take photos without showing people or their homes. Opening hours, fees and which sections are open can change, so check the official information from the local government or facility before you go.

If you take a photo, put it on the map

Tracks where trains no longer run can still be found in many mountain valleys and town centers across Japan. If you find a disused railway you can walk, or the stillness of a place that used to be a station, try posting it on the LIMap map. It may be what leads someone else to that road with nowhere left to go.