History
Chikuma Station opened on 14 March 2009 on the Shinano Railway Line, built at the request of the city of Chikuma after more than twenty years of local lobbying. Construction cost about 370 million yen, shared between the city, Nagano Prefecture and the national government. Because rising steel prices delayed the footbridge and lifts, a temporary ramp at the up-platform stood in until the overpass opened on 26 October 2009. The station was made fully unstaffed on 18 March 2023, after a phase of weekend-only closures, and Suica acceptance began on 14 March 2026.
History summarized from Japanese & English Wikipedia · last reviewed 2026-05-18.