Gala-Yuzawa Station
Gala-Yuzawa Station ガーラ湯沢駅 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The station exterior in March 2012 | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | Yuzawa, Niigata Japan | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 36°57′02″N 138°47′58″E / 36.950483°N 138.799478°E | ||||||||||
| Operated by | JR East | ||||||||||
| Line | Gala-Yuzawa Line | ||||||||||
| Distance | 1.8 km (1.1 mi) from Echigo-Yuzawa | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 1 island platform | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||
| Structure type | At-grade | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Status | Seasonal, staffed ("Midori no Madoguchi" ) | ||||||||||
| Website | Official website | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opened | 20 December 1990 | ||||||||||
| Passengers | |||||||||||
| 1,029 per day (FY2017) | |||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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Gala-Yuzawa Station (Japanese: ガーラ湯沢駅, Hepburn: Gāra-Yuzawa-eki) is a seasonal railway station on the Gala-Yuzawa Line in the town of Yuzawa, Niigata, Japan. Operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East), the station serves the adjacent Gala Yuzawa ski resort and is open only during the winter ski season. The station opened on 20 December 1990.[1]
Services
Gala-Yuzawa Station is the sole station on the Gala-Yuzawa Line, a 1.8-kilometre (1.1 mi) branch line from Echigo-Yuzawa Station. All passenger services are operated as extensions of Jōetsu Shinkansen Tanigawa services to and from Tokyo, and are classed as limited express services.
The station operates only during the winter ski season, typically from mid-December until early May.[2]
As of December 2024, there are generally between 10 and 13 departures per day, with some services operating only on weekends or on specific dates.[3][4] Selected weekend-only services may terminate at Ueno instead of Tokyo.[4]
Journey times to Tokyo are approximately 1 hour 17 minutes to 1 hour 37 minutes.
Outside train operating hours during the winter season, free shuttle buses operate between Gala-Yuzawa Station and Echigo-Yuzawa Station,[5] where additional Shinkansen and conventional rail services are available.
Station layout
The station consists of a single island platform serving two tracks.[1] Facilities include a staffed Midori no Madoguchi ticket office, ticket vending machines, and automatic ticket gates.
The station entrance and exit are located inside the main building of the Gala Yuzawa Ski Resort, which is owned by the JR East Group.[6]
Platforms
| 1-2 | ■ Gala Yuzawa Line | for Echigo-Yuzawa, Omiya, and Tokyo |
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Ticket counter and ticket machines, December 2022
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Ticket gates, December 2022
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Platform, March 2010
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Platform, underneath Ski Resort main building, March 2023
Passenger statistics
In fiscal 2017, the station was used by an average of 1,029 boarding passengers daily.[7] The passenger figures for previous years are as shown below.
| Fiscal year | Daily average |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 907[8] |
| 2005 | 987[9] |
| 2010 | 941[10] |
| 2015 | 1,127[11] |
See also
References
- ^ a b "新幹線なのに在来線". Japan Railfan Magazine. Vol. 40, no. 467. Japan: Kōyūsha Co., Ltd. March 2000. pp. 66–67.
- ^ "リフト料金・営業時間". ガーラ湯沢スキー場(新潟県湯沢町)｜GALA YUZAWA (in Japanese). Retrieved 10 January 2025.
- ^ "GALA Yuzawa (Seasonal) Station Timetable (Jōetsu Shinkansen)". Official Web site of East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Retrieved 10 January 2025.
- ^ a b "GALA Yuzawa (Seasonal) Station Timetable (Jōetsu Shinkansen)". Official Web site of East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Retrieved 10 January 2025.
- ^ "アクセス". ガーラ湯沢スキー場(新潟県湯沢町)｜GALA YUZAWA (in Japanese). Retrieved 10 January 2025.
- ^ "Advancement of the JR EAST Group's Inbound Strategy" (PDF). East Japan Railway Company. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
- ^ 各駅の乗車人員 (2017年度) [Station passenger figures (Fiscal 2017)] (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. 2018. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
- ^ 各駅の乗車人員 (2000年度) [Station passenger figures (Fiscal 2000)] (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. 2001. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
- ^ 各駅の乗車人員 (2005年度) [Station passenger figures (Fiscal 2005)] (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. 2006. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
- ^ 各駅の乗車人員 (2010年度) [Station passenger figures (Fiscal 2010)] (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. 2011. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
- ^ 各駅の乗車人員 (2015年度) [Station passenger figures (Fiscal 2015)] (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
External links
- JR East station information (in Japanese)
- Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort website (in English)