Fukuoka: Red Trolley Train Runs Through Mountainous Village; Passengers Get Once-in-a-Month Experience

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:19 JST, May 24, 2025&

AKAMURA, Fukuoka — Only on one specified day each month, a bright red trolley train passes through mountainous areas at a gentle pace in Akamura, Fukuoka Prefecture. Akamura means Red village in Japanese.

The train makes a 1.8-kilometer-or-so round trip from Heisei Chikuho Railway’s Aka Station to the border of a neighboring town.

The central part of Fukuoka Prefecture, including the village, is known as the Chikuho region, which once prospered through its coal mining industry. Local volunteers had the idea to make use of the remains of a coal transportation line.

Construction on the line began in 1957. However, the coal industry declined, and the track was never opened.

They created the “Akamura trolley association” and began working to lay specialized rails on the abandoned route.

Passengers can enjoy journeying through the mountains and tunnels while the train rocks back and forth. They can also use flashlights to project pictures they have drawn onto the walls of the tunnel, which elicits shouts of joy from the children among them.

The trip costs ¥600 for adults and ¥300 for children up to elementary school age. This year, the service will run through November.