Passenger numbers for local railway lines across Japan continue to fall as the population declines and more people opt to drive. Stations, meant to be hubs of vitality, are also seeing numbers fall. In response, private companies, NPOs and local governments, in collaboration with the railways, have begun utilizing some of these station buildings. In Chiba Prefecture, JR East's Emi Station became Japan's first combined station and post office. In Fukuoka Prefecture, Heisei Chikuho Railway's Yusubaru Station saw the installation of a university laboratory, and Nagai City in Yamagata Prefecture became home to the nation's first integrated station and government office building. Take a look at the efforts being made to revitalize the stations. And in "Tourist Trains in Style" see FUJI-SANROKU RAILWAY's "FUJISAN VIEW EXPRESS," which runs on the railway closest to Mt. Fuji.

See railway-related news from across Japan, covered by NHK from January to June 2023. See recent "Railway Events," the introduction of "New Rolling Stock," and "New Initiatives" being employed by the railway industry. In "New Rolling Stock," see JR West's Urara and Tobu Railway's limited express Spacia X. In "New Initiatives," see the logistics experiment being conducted with the Kyushu Shinkansen and test runs of an automatic operation on the Tokaido Shinkansen. Join us as we look back at a selection of railway news from the first half of 2023.