New Toyama Tourist Route Postponed Due to Quake Damage

May 28, 2024 | News On Japan

Toyama, May 28, 2024 (News On Japan) - Toyama Prefecture has announced that it will not open the new tourist route, the 'Kurobe Unazuki Canyon Route,' to the public this year. The decision comes due to the impact of the Noto Peninsula earthquake, which has hindered restoration work.

The Kurobe Gorge trolley train in Kurobe City, Toyama Prefecture, has only partially reopened because the Kanetsuri Bridge along the route was damaged by falling rocks caused by the earthquake.

A detailed survey by the "Kurobe Gorge Railway" revealed that a rock formation approximately 300 meters above the bridge near the summit of East Kanetsuri Mountain had shifted by 50 centimeters. The rock formation measures about 9 square meters and 12 meters in height.

Rockfall prevention work alone will take three months before bridge repairs can begin, making it impossible to predict the completion of all the necessary work. As a result, the trolley train will not be fully operational this season.

In response, Toyama Prefecture has decided to postpone the full opening of the Kurobe Unazuki Canyon Route, initially targeted for around October 1, until next year.

The Kurobe Unazuki Canyon Route was highly anticipated as a new major tourist attraction, linking the V-shaped Kurobe Gorge, considered the most spectacular in Japan, to the upstream Kurobe Dam.

Source: ANN

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