ANAMIZU: Operations were resumed in all sections of the Noto Tetsudo railway on Saturday after the train line was damaged in a massive earthquake that rocked the Noto Peninsula in central Japan on New Year’s Day.

The area where operations were resumed for the first time in three months on the day was the 16.8-kilometer section connecting Noto-Nakajima Station in the city of Nanao in Ishikawa Prefecture and Anamizu Station in the town of Anamizu, also in Ishikawa.

Operations on the railway will be limited to around 80% of normal times for the time being.

On Saturday, a ceremony was held at Anamizu Station to commemorate the reopening of all Noto Tetsudo sections.

“We made it in time for the new fiscal year and the new school year” from April, Tetsuya Nakata, head of the railway’s operator, a public-private, or third-sector, company, said.

“The reopening is extremely meaningful for the region,” he said.

Blowing its whistle, the first train of the day, adorned with a sticker with the words “Ganbaro (Let’s Go) Noto”, departed from Amamizu Station at 6:12 a.m.

“I’d like to go to Nanao with my friends,” 17-year-old Hiyori Kataoka, who was among those at the station to catch a glimpse of the train, said.

“I’m thankful (for the railway’s full reopening) as it would be easier for me to create new memories in my final year of high school,” Kataoka, who attends Anamizu High School, said.

The Noto Tetsudo railway stretches over 33.1 kilometers, connecting Nanao and Anamizu stations.

Some 70% of its passengers regularly use the train to get to and from school or work. In recent times, the train line has become popular for its Noto Satoyama Satoumi sightseeing train.

Operations were suspended in all train sections of the Noto Tetsudo railway following the Jan. 1 Noto Peninsula earthquake, with the 7.6-magnitude quake causing damage to railway-related facilities, such as station platforms sinking and train tracks being derailed.

The railway resumed services between Nanao and Noto-Nakajima stations on Feb. 15, thanks to aid by West Japan Railway Co., or JR West, and others.

JIJI Press