Kishi Station (Wakayama)

Railway station in Kinokawa, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan

Kishi Station

貴志駅

Kishi Station in August 2010

General information
Location| Kishigawacho Kodo, Kinokawa-shi, Wakayama-ken 640-0413
Japan
Coordinates| 34°12′35″N 135°18′43″E﻿ / ﻿34.2096°N 135.3120°E﻿ / 34.2096; 135.3120
Operated by|  Wakayama Electric Railway
Line(s)| ■ Kishigawa Line
Distance| 14.3 km from Wakayama
Platforms| 1 side platform
Construction
Structure type| At-grade
Other information
Status| Staffed
Station code| 14
History
Opened| 18 August 1933 (1933-08-18)
Passengers
FY2017| 1397 per day[1]

Location

Kishi Station

Location within Wakayama Prefecture

Show map of Wakayama Prefecture

Kishi Station

Kishi Station (Japan)

Show map of Japan

Station Master Cat "Tama"

Kishi Station (貴志駅, Kishi-eki) is a passenger railway station in located in the city of Kinokawa, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, operated by the private railway company Wakayama Electric Railway.

## Lines

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Kishi Station is a terminal station of the Kishigawa Line, and is located 14.3 kilometers from the opposing terminus of the line at Wakayama Station.

## Station layout

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The station consists of one deadheaded side platform serving a single bi-directional track. The station is staffed and managed by a cat.

## Adjacent stations

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« | Service  | »

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Kishigawa Line
Sandō | Local  | Nishiyamaguchi

## History

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The old Kishi Station

Kishi Station opened on August 18, 1933. On February 1, 2010, the Kishi Station building was closed and demolished. Construction began on a new station facility in March, with the cat-themed new complex opened in July.[2]

Kishi Station was known for Tama the stationmaster cat, who became the mascot for the station until she died in June 2015.[3] The cat held the official position as Super Station Master.[4][5] Tama was succeeded as Station Master by another cat, named Nitama.[6]

Since renovation, the station is housed in a cat-face-shaped building, with a Tama-theme cafe, with cat theme chairs and cakes. There is a souvenir shop with a wide range of stationery (pens, staplers and others) and Kishi Station uniforms. The Wakayama Electric Railway operates three cat-themed trains: Strawberry, Tama, and Toy.[7] The feline stationmaster works on Friday–Tuesday (10am–4pm) and is off duty on Wednesday and Thursday.

## Passenger statistics

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Ridership per day [1]

Year  | Ridership
2011  | 1,345
2012  | 1,340
2013  | 1,427
2014  | 1,415
2015  | 1,507
2016  | 1,425
2017  | 1,397
2018  | 1,358
2019  | 1,273
2020  | 1,212
2021  | 1,174
2022  | 1,132

## Gallery

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* The renovated platform with a Shinto shrine on the left, August 2010

## Surrounding Area

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* former Kishigawa Town Hall
* Kinokawa City Nakatakashi Elementary School

## See also

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* List of railway stations in Japan

## References

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1. ^ a b "国土数値情報 駅別乗降客数データ" (in Japanese). MLIT. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
2. ^ "Cat 'stationmaster' gets promoted to executive post at railway company - the Mainichi Daily News". Archived from the original on 2010-01-17. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
3. ^ 「たま駅長」死ぬ―和歌山電鉄の名物駅長、心不全で １６歳、人間なら８０歳 ２８日に社葬 [Stationmaster Tama dies at age of 16]. Sankei West (in Japanese). Japan: The Sankei Shimbun & Sankei Digital. 2015-06-24. Archived from the original on 2015-06-24. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
4. ^ "Tama the station cat brings passengers to Kishikawa railway line." Times Online. May 27, 2008.
5. ^ Lah, Kyung. "Cat in hat makes $10 million for town." CNN. October 29, 2008.
6. ^ Wong, Maggie Hiufu (2015-08-24). "Meet Nitama, the new cat in charge at Japan's Kishi Station". CNN.
7. ^ Wong, Hiufu (24 May 2013). "The cat that saved a Japanese train station: Meet Tama, Japan's cutest stationmaster, and her adorable cat-shaped station home". CNN Travel. Retrieved 27 May 2013.

## External links

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Media related to Kishi Station (Wakayama) at Wikimedia Commons

* Kishi Station timetable

* v
* t
* e

Stations of the Wakayama Electric Railway Kishigawa Line

* Wakayama
* Tanakaguchi
* Nichizengū
* Kōzaki
* Kamayama
* Kōtsū Center Mae
* Okazakimae
* Kire
* Idakiso
* Sandō
* Oikeyūen
* Nishiyamaguchi
* Kanrojimae
* Kishi

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