Image Source: Hiroshima News TSS
Ahead of the opening of Hiroshima Electric Railway’s new “Circular Line,” a test ride was held on the 25th. The original tram stop was demolished and a new track was laid… The “Matoba-cho” tram stop has been reborn in a stylish, glass-enclosed design…
[Kato and Nogawa, newscasters] “This is a place where the tram has never run before, right?” “Here it comes! With a banner indicating it’s a chartered service…” “It looks great to see it running here!” “Wow!” “So smooth!” “I want to ride it.” And so… On the 25th, members of the press were specially allowed to experience a test ride of the Circular Line just before its opening… [In-car announcement] “This train is on the loop line, inner loop.” [Kato and Nogawa] “At Minamimachi 6-chome, the train ahead turns right, and we turn left.” “It’s been a while. Nowadays, it’s normal to go past Hijiyamashita and take the Ekimae Ohashi route, but this route is also available.” [In-car announcement] “Next stop is Matobacho, Matobacho.”
[Nogawa] “Try listening to the number after the English announcement after Matobacho.” [In-car announcement] “Matobacho… L1.” [Kato and Nogawa] “It’s L1… L1 is assigned because it’s the loop line.” “We’re really feeling Hiroshima Station up close as we turn off.” “What does it feel like… Wow.” “You can see the trains going to and from Hiroshima Station from here… You can also see the trains going up Ekimae Ohashi from here…” “The curve we just saw feels different when you’re inside compared to when you’re outside.” “Personally, I thought there was a certain kind of attraction-like fun to it.” “Yes, there is.” Hiroshima Electric Railway is also known as a “moving train museum,” and they are planning to run various historic trains on this new loop line so that tourists can enjoy it as well.
[Kato and Nogawa, newscasters] “Since it goes around in circles, it might be appealing to people who like it to just hop on even if they don’t have any particular reason to.” “One way to enjoy it is to make it your goal to ride a particular train.” And along this loop line… “Ah, I can see it! With Hiroshima University’s Faculty of Law having returned to the city center, I think this will be a very familiar Hiroshima Electric Railway for Yoshinaka-san.”
Studio Yoshinaka-sensei, the loop line will also pass in front of Hiroshima University, what do you think? [Professor Nobuhito Yoshinaka, Dean of the Faculty of Law, Hiroshima University] “It’s really exciting. It might become a new tourist attraction.” [
Nogawa, newscaster] This loop route makes consecutive stops at stations with the same name. This map was created based on the circular route map posted on the Hiroden website, but there is only one notation for Minamimachi 6-chome… In reality, there are two tram stops for Minamimachi 6-chome, and the circular line stops at both of them consecutively. You might think, “Why not just make it one?” but… Minamimachi 6-chome is the point where the line that goes through the city center, such as Hondori, to Hiroshima Port (Ujina) and the line that goes from Hiroshima Station through Hijiyamashita to Ujina merge, so it is difficult to combine them into one. For this reason, the in-car announcement will say “This is Minamimachi 6-chome” once and the tram will stop, and then it will say “This is Minamimachi 6-chome next,” so it may surprise first-time riders, but don’t panic, the location is slightly different, so please get off according to your destination or purpose.
