What did the Shinkansen bring to Hokkaido?

April 7, 17:27

"I hear every day that customers look at this facility and say,'Nothing' or'What, here'."

The owner of a liquor retailer lamented the current situation with a sad look. It was.

The Hokkaido Shinkansen, which should have opened with the great expectations of the people.

But now, five years after its opening, expectations are fading.

What exactly is happening?

(Hakodate Broadcasting Station reporter Shinsuke Ayugo)

Donan, which was excited by the opening effect

The Hokkaido Shinkansen opened five years ago on March 26, 2016, between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate Hokuto.

It was also the moment when one of the long-cherished wishes of Hokkaido people was achieved, that Hokkaido would be connected to Honshu by Shinkansen.

The economic spillover effect to Hokkaido estimated by the Development Bank of Japan is approximately 13.6 billion yen annually.

In southern Hokkaido (hereinafter referred to as Southern Hokkaido), great expectations were placed on its economic effects.

And in the first year of opening, expectations became a reality.

The number of tourists has increased in various places, and the number of tourists in Hakodate has reached a record high of 5.6 million.

But for a while.

Five years after its opening, the expected effects are diminishing year by year.

The same scene as 5 years ago

Agricultural land spread over Hokuto City, which is adjacent to Hakodate City.

Shin-Hakodate Hokuto Station is located in one corner.

In anticipation of the opening effect of the Shinkansen, Hokuto City has invested a large amount of money to develop approximately 5.3 hectares in front of the station as a commercial area.

According to the city, about 70% of the land has been contracted with companies, and several car rental companies and two hotels are already located there.

However, other than that, it is in a vacant lot.

Due to the fact that it still takes 10 years to extend the Shinkansen to Sapporo and that it is nearly 20 kilometers away from the center of Hakodate City, even after five years, the visible expansion of companies and commercial facilities has not progressed.

The complex facility adjacent to the station is also struggling.

Of the 6-story facility built by a private company, the city buys it and operates it as a commercial area with souvenir shops and restaurants, but the figures are sparse.

I visited many times for interviews, but few people came and went, and it was always quiet.

Under these circumstances, Hirohiro Inamura, who has been running a retail store that sells alcohol since the opening of the facility, is raising a sense of crisis.

Mr. Inamura

"Shin-Hakodate Hokuto Station is just a transfer station to Hakodate and Sapporo. Therefore, people do not get off easily from the station. If you do not get off, some shops at this facility will also be available. I can't find it. I think the reason why there aren't many people visiting it is that there is nothing when you get off the station. "

Stores were withdrawn one after another.

At the time of opening, 18 stores were opened in the facility, but due to sluggish growth in the number of visitors, the number has now decreased to less than half, 7 stores.

The vacant space is used as a rest area, a gallery, and a corner to introduce famous local enka singers.

It's not Corona's fault!

??

The question that came to my mind here was that the current severe situation may have been affected by the spread of the new coronavirus infection.

However, Mr. Inamura says, "The problem was before the corona wreck."

Mr. Inamura:

"It

's

easy to make it the influence of the corona in the end, but I think that it wasn't just the cause of the corona, but something fundamental before that was missing. Originally before the corona. I think it's because there was a problem with Corona, and Corona had a catch-up. "

Under these circumstances, there was also a bright topic.

In February, it was decided to open a new hotel in front of the station.

Mr. Inamura has high expectations for the move in anticipation of the extension to Sapporo 10 years from now.

Mr. Inamura:

"The severe situation is still going on, but I think this is the gateway to Hokkaido, and various people come from all over Japan, so after all I came to this land and said," Oh, I'm glad. " I want to make it a place that makes me want to come back to Hokuto City. I think that is very important for both Hokuto City and Hokkaido, and if that becomes a reality, it would be very nice. I am thinking"

Mayor Tatsuo Ikeda of Hokuto City, where Shin-Hakodate Hokuto Station is located, said he was aware of criticism and dissatisfaction with the current situation in front of the station, but asked for his understanding that it would take time to develop.

Mayor Ikeda

"At the beginning of the opening, there was really nothing. That was the second year, and the hotel opened. Since then, it is a fact that the situation has continued to be a little stalled, and by all means It looks like there's nothing in front of the station, but we're not saying that the place will soon become a city or a shopping district, but I think we have to take some time. The location of the commercial area in front of the station is already close to 70%, and the location plan is in progress. I think the biggest issue in the future is how to develop it. "

Tourists have increased 10 times

On the other hand, Kikonai Town, where the first Shinkansen stop in Hokkaido is located, is in contrast.

With the opening of the Shinkansen, the town with a population of about 4,000 is attracting about 600,000 tourists, ten times more than before, every year.

The area around the station has also changed, and convenience stores and hotels are lined up, and people are coming and going during the day.

The roadside station built in front of the station plays a major role as the center of this.

The facility has a large selection of local products from Southern Hokkaido, and according to the roadside station, not only tourists but also locals often visit.

Even during my interview, I saw people coming and going frequently, enjoying shopping and eating with family and friends.

Looking after the corona

However, the number of tourists is decreasing due to the spread of the new corona infection.

According to the roadside summary, the number of tourists in the town in the first half of this year (April-September) decreased by 37.3% from the same period of the previous year to only 260,000, and the situation is difficult even at the roadside station due to the corona disaster. Is continuing.

Under these circumstances, new efforts have begun to strengthen the dissemination of tourist information in multiple languages ​​in order to capture inbound tourists with an eye on the future of Corona.

Last October, the town hired Mr. Lee from China as a "wide-area tourism concierge" to disseminate tourist information on Southern Hokkaido.

Taking advantage of his foreign language, Mr. Lee is working on translating local tourist information into Chinese and English every day and disseminating it on SNS.

In January, a lot of reactions were posted on the Chinese SNS "Weibo" in Chinese about the traditional event "Kanchu Misogi Matsuri" in Kikonai Town, where young people in lower belts cleanse the shrine's shintai. It is said that there was.

Mr. Lee

"I think it is very important to disseminate tourist information even if there is a corona. I posted it on Weibo and Facebook in multiple languages ​​so that more overseas people could know the charm of Kikonai Town and the Southern Hokkaido area. I think

Shinkansen does not stop

Kikonai Town seems to be fully benefiting from the opening of the Shinkansen, but there are also issues.

According to the town, the main Shinkansen passengers are mainly for business, and tourists are rarely used.

One of the causes is the problem of down trains that do not stop during the daytime.

Actually, the down train of the Hokkaido Shinkansen does not stop at Kikonai Station for the last 4 hours at 10 am due to speeding up.

As this will eliminate the opportunity for tourists from the Kanto and Tohoku regions to visit Southern Hokkaido, nine local governments in the vicinity, including Kikonai Town, continue to request JR Hokkaido to revise the schedule.

Mayor Suzuki

"One of the reasons why more tourists come by car while traveling around Hokkaido than customers on the Shinkansen is the time the Shinkansen stops. The Shinkansen arrives at Kikonai Station during the daytime. First of all, I think that the role and mission of each of our towns is to create an attractive community that makes us want to stop at the time of day. "

Make a station, in the ranch

How to utilize the effects of the Shinkansen in community development.

As the search continued in various places, there was a place where a unique plan was set out among the local governments where the station will be constructed in the future for the extension to Sapporo.

It is Yakumo Town in Southern Hokkaido.

After getting off the station, you can see the ranch and the grazing cows in front of you.

There are no buildings such as commercial facilities or hotels.

Instead of developing the idyllic pastures on a large scale, we formulated a maintenance plan to keep the scenery of dairy farming, which is the core industry of the town, as it is.

Professor Motoo Kushibiki of Aomori University, who is familiar with the relationship between the Shinkansen and town development, has a unique plan that is the exact opposite of the conventional idea, and says that it can be a model case for future town development centered on the Shinkansen station.

"Along the Shinkansen nationwide, especially where stations were built in the suburbs, I'm stuck in a circuit that fails because I can't build a building in front of the station. For the Shinkansen, such 20th century-style curse is still strong. We have to change it from the ground up. In a situation where the population is declining, the population is aging, and the overall consumption power of Japan is declining, how to make it have important functions for local life, or sustainable. If we don't properly discuss what kind of infrastructure should be prepared for community development, it will be a dead end discussion. "

Hakodate Broadcasting Station Reporter

Shinsuke Ayugo Joined in

2008

After working in the Network News Department of the International Department, he is currently

covering a wide range of southern

Hokkaido

regardless of his field of

affiliation.