With the opening of the new platform, travel times to the major travel hub have been cut by between 20 to 33 minutes on both lines. — Reuters
OSAKA: A newly developed underground area near JR Osaka Station is expected to further enhance the functionality of Western Japan’s largest rail terminal.
The new underground platform in the redevelopment zone north of the station is served by two express trains: the Haruka, which connects to Kansai Airport, and the Kuroshio, which heads towards Wakayama.
Previously, neither of these services connected directly to Osaka Station, meaning passengers had to change at Shin-Osaka Station or Tennoji Station.
With the opening of the new platform, travel times to the major travel hub have been cut by between 20 to 33 minutes on both lines.
Osaka has two major downtown areas, Kita and Minami, and people have long bemoaned the lack of access to the Kita area from Kansai Airport since the latter’s opening in 1994.
With the launch of the new platform, however, it is now more convenient to travel into central Osaka from the airport, and the eastern part of Osaka Prefecture is afforded better access to the Kita district.
The Osaka Higashi Line, which runs through the eastern part of the prefecture, has been extended to serve this area, allowing passengers to travel directly to Osaka Station without having to change at Shin-Osaka.
The new area connects underground to Osaka Station’s West Exit ticket gates, while above ground, the sprawling 17-hectare site, which previously hosted a freight station, continues to be redeveloped.
Construction of a new 23-story station building is already underway, and it is slated to open in the fall of 2024.
The under-development Naniwasuji Line, which will connect Kita and Minami, is scheduled to open in the spring of 2031 and serve the new underground area at Osaka Station.
West Japan Railway Co (JR West) had originally planned to build a new station in the area, but the plan was scrapped after construction began upon approval of the Naniwasuji Line project, and it was decided to link the line’s terminal to Osaka Station via a direct passageway.
The construction of the new area at Osaka Station sits at the core of a major project involving several railroad operators. The Naniwasuji Line will be operated jointly by JR West and Nankai Electric Railway Co and connect to both JR Namba and Nankai Shin-Imamiya stations. Hankyu Corp, meanwhile, is planning to build a connecting line from the new platform to Shin-Osaka Station.
“We’re no longer in an era where we think about competing for passengers,” a Nankai official said. “We now believe that increased convenience will lead to an across-the-board rise in the number of people using the whole railway system.” — The Japan News/ANN
