Hon-Chiba Station

Hon-Chiba Station 本千葉駅
Hon-Chiba Station, April 2015
General information
Location	1 Nagazu, Chūō-ku, Chiba-shi, Chiba-ken 260-0854 Japan
Coordinates	35°36′03.93″N 140°07′15.66″E / 35.6010917°N 140.1210167°E / 35.6010917; 140.1210167
Operated by	JR East
Line(s)	■ Uchibō Line ■ Sotobō Line
Distance	1.4 km from Chiba
Platforms	1 island platform
Other information
Status	Staffed
Website	Official website
History
Opened	25 February 1896; 128 years ago (1896-02-25)
Previous names	Samukawa (until 1902)
Passengers
FY2019	11,901 daily
Services
Preceding station JR East Following station Chiba Terminus Sotobō / Uchibō lines Sobū Rapid Soga towards Kazusa-Ichinomiya or Kimitsu Sotobō / Uchibō lines Local Soga towards Awa-Kamogawa
Location Hon-Chiba Station Location within Chiba Prefecture Show map of Chiba Prefecture Hon-Chiba Station Hon-Chiba Station (Japan) Show map of Japan

Hon-Chiba station (本千葉駅, Hon-Chiba-eki) is a junction passenger railway station located in Chūō-ku, Chiba, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East).

Hon-Chiba Station is served by the Sotobō Line, and is located 1.4 km (0.87 mi) from the starting point of the line at Chiba Station. It is also served by trains of the Uchibō Line which continue past the nominal terminus of that line at Soga Station to terminate at Chiba as well.

Hon-Chiba station consists of a single island platform serving two tracks. The station is elevated, with the station building below. The station is attended. The east side of the station is much busier than the west side.

Hon-Chiba is among the older stations of Japan, having opened as Samukawa Station (寒川駅, Samukawa-eki) on the Bōsō Railway on 25 February 1896. It was renamed to its present name on 28 January 1902. On 1 September 1907, the Bōsō Railway was nationalized and became part of the Japanese Government Railways, which was transformed into the Japan National Railways (JNR) after World War II. At the time of its construction, Hon-Chiba Station was located close to present day Keisei Chiba-Chūō Station, but it was heavily damaged in World War II, and subsequently moved to its current location on 1 February 1958. In 1972 Emperor Hirohito used this station while on his way to inspect the Chiba Prefectural Cancer Center. The station became part of the JR East network upon the privatization of the Japan National Railways (JNR) on 1 April 1987.

In fiscal 2019, the station was used by an average of 11,901 passengers daily (boarding passengers only).^[1]

Hon-Chiba station is located in the heart of Chiba City. Rather than being located close to Chiba Station, Chiba prefectural office, Chiba District Court, and other government buildings can instead be found to the north of this station. Kenchō-mae Station on the Chiba Urban Monorail Line 1 is within a few minutes walking distance.

Also nearby:

• Kashiwado Hospital
• Chiba-Chūō Bus Headquarters
• Chiba Budōkan
• Samukawa Shrine
• Itsukushima Shrine
• Chiba University (Medicine & Nursing)
• Chiba Prefectural Chiba Senior High School and Chiba Junior High School
• Chiba Prefectural Library
• Chiba Municipal Samukawa Elementary School

• List of railway stations in Japan

Media related to Hon-Chiba Station at Wikimedia Commons

• JR East station information (in Japanese)