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The Yomiuri Shimbun One of Asa Coast Railway Co.’s dual-mode vehicles (DMVs) runs along the coast in Kaiyo, Tokushima Prefecture. Passengers can get a great view of the Pacific Ocean. (This photo was taken with permission from the landowner.)
By Kota Arakawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer
14:35 JST, March 29, 2025
KAIYO, Tokushima — “A world first drives in this town,” reads a banner at the Awakainan Bunkamura cultural complex in Kaiyo, Tokushima Prefecture. The town is the starting point of a transport service that uses dual-mode vehicles (DMVs), which can run on both roads and railway tracks.
The world’s first full-scale commercial operation of DMVs was achieved in the town by Asa Coast Railway Co.
The company operates DMVs converted from microbuses. The vehicle I boarded was in bus mode. At the first stop, Awa-Kainan Station, it changed to railway mode, which took about 30 seconds. Wadaiko drum music played on board while the steel wheels used on the tracks were lowered, and I could feel the front of the vehicle slowly rising.
The DMV ran on the tracks via Kaifu Station and reached the coastline. On the way to Shishikui Station, passengers admired the breathtaking view of the sea from the windows. This is the favorite view for Kazuhiko Kochi, a 51-year-old official of Asa Coast Railway, who also works as a DMV driver.
The Yomiuri Shimbun A dual-mode vehicle driver Kazuhiko Kochi talks about the DMV.
The vehicle then entered Kochi Prefecture before completing its approximately 10-kilometer railroad journey to Kannoura Station, where it switched back to bus mode to drive on a national highway. After making a stop at Uminoeki Toyo Town Station, adjacent to a beach, the vehicle re-entered Tokushima Prefecture to reach its final stop, Michinoeki Shishikui Onsen Station. The one-way journey took about 30 minutes.
“I was able to appreciate the views of the sea and mountains, which makes this vehicle one of a kind,” said a 54-year-old man from Komatsushima, Tokushima Prefecture, who was riding the DMV for the first time. “I hope more and more people will use it.”
Amazement at mode shifts
The Yomiuri Shimbun A DMV in bus mode, left, switches to railway mode
Asa Coast Railway is a joint public and private venture funded by Tokushima and Kochi prefectures as well as the two towns along the route. Its railway services started in 1992 as the Asato Line, running between Kaifu and Kannoura stations. The now defunct Japanese National Railways originally planned railroad construction for that stretch, but the plan was aborted and subsequently taken over by Asa Coast Railway.
DMV driver Kochi was employed by the company in 1993 and started working as a train driver, his dream job. At that time, Asato Line trains were filled with the lively conversations of high school students on their commute to school, he recalled.
In 2006, the Tokushima prefectural Shishikui Business High School closed, causing a decrease in users of Shishikui Station, the school’s nearest station. The number of Asato Line passengers declined and the company’s business fell into the red.
The Yomiuri Shimbun This ise-ebi spiny lobster has been given the role of stationmaster at Shihikui Station, the only manned station belonging to Asa Coast Railway.
“Can the company go on?” Kochi worried. Then he heard that DMVs would be introduced.
Yet commercial operations of DMVs posed a host of unprecedented problems. Even though existing facilities and equipment could be used, the company had to revamp and upgrade them, such as building new lower platforms suitable for the height of the vehicles.
The company was also required to obtain various permissions and approvals regarding bus operations from the central government and prepare a dedicated system for operations and security. Drivers had to obtain a bus driver’s license, which is needed to drive DMVs.
DMV services were finally launched in December 2021. Not only passengers but also railway fans and tourists flocked to each station on the big day.
“There were shouts of joy when the vehicle changed modes,” Kochi said, looking back on the day. “I felt a surge of happiness and pride in myself — the world’s first [DMV] was running.”
The number of Asa Coast Railway users has been on the decline since hitting a peak of 176,000 in fiscal 1992. In 2022, shortly after the DMVs were introduced, the annual figure surpassed 40,000, only to drop to 25,046 in 2024, although that is only a preliminary figure.
Local passengers increasing
The Yomiuri Shimbun
The situation is far from great, but Naoyoshi Otani, a senior executive of the company, has a positive outlook.
“Local passengers are increasing,” he said. “We’d like to show off the beauty of the southeast Shikoku region and create a new route to bring in a new stream of people.”
For local railways, which are struggling across the country, can the DMV be a savior? The vehicle carrying the hopes of many keeps running today while catching the sea breeze.
