Japan has discontinued rail service on 1,366 kilometers of track over the past 30 years, equivalent to approximately 5% of the country’s total rail network, according to an analysis by Kyodo News based on data released by the Ministry of Transport.
In total, 68 sections were discontinued between the fiscal years 1996 and 2025, most of them in regions affected by depopulation, reflecting the growing pressure on local public transportation in rural areas.
The pace of closures has increased from one decade to the next
The analyzed data shows that the pace of line closures has accelerated over the past three decades.
In the first ten years, up to fiscal year 2005, 387 km were closed. In the following decade, the length increased to 445 km, and in the decade ending with fiscal year 2025, the total reached 534 km.
Hokkaido accounts for about one-third of the closed lines
A significant portion of the closures has been concentrated in Hokkaido, the northern island of Japan, which accounts for approximately one-third of the total length of lines discontinued over the past 30 years.
According to the analysis, a local railway company closed a 140 km route here, while another discontinued service on an additional 116 km.
Of the total 1,366 km closed, 680 km were operated by railway companies resulting from the breakup of the former national railway, and 686 km belonged to other operators.
At the same time, Japan continued to build new lines
During the same period, Japan opened 1,913 km of new railway.
However, the majority of this expansion was dedicated to the Shinkansen high-speed network, which accounted for 1,156 km of the total.
The overall picture is thus a contrasting one: while some rural regions have gradually lost access to rail service, the Japanese government has continued to invest heavily in high-speed corridors and infrastructure deemed strategic.
“Railways must be viewed as public transportation, not just as an issue for operators”
Professor Ikuhiro Nasuno of Ryutsu Keizai University stated that the issue should not be left solely to the operators.
“We should not leave this matter solely to the operators, but rather view railways as a public transportation system,” he said.
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