Railway Festival in Aomori Pref. Puts Charm of Trains on Full Display, Shows off Trains and Local Specialty Dishes

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:42 JST, October 22, 2025

HIRAKAWA, Aomori — The Konan Tetsudo railway company let visitors explore a train depot at Hiraka Station and enjoy stalls set up by local shops during its annual railway festival in Hirakawa, Aomori Prefecture, on Oct. 4.

The event is usually held around Railway Day, Oct. 14, to promote the appeal of railways, though it was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Five companies, including Tsugaru Railway Co. and South Hokkaido Railway Co., set up sales booths at the event this year, along with a stall selling Hirakawa Sagari, a type of barbecue meat that is a local specialty.

At the depot, visitors snapped photos of a snowplow train and enthusiastically looked at train parts and a machine used to mount tires onto wheels.

A fifth-grade elementary school student from Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, said, “The front of the snowplow train looked rugged and cool.”