History
Nishi-Ōita Station opened on 1 November 1911 as an intermediate stop on the Hōshū Main Line (renamed the Nippō Main Line on 15 December 1923), the day Ōita was added as the new southern terminus by an extension from Beppu under the Imperial Railway Agency. A freight branch ran from the station to Ōita Port from 1 December 1955 until its 1 February 1984 closure (rails removed 1987). The Ōita–Nishi-Ōita section was double-tracked on 21 September 1966. At the 1 April 1987 privatisation the station passed jointly to JR Kyushu and JR Freight. SUGOCA service began on 1 December 2012, and on 1 October 2023 management transitioned from JR Kyushu Service Support to direct JR Kyushu operation.
History summarized from Japanese & English Wikipedia · last reviewed 2026-05-22.
Notes
On 9 March 1990 seven bolts holding a rail joint near a turnout between the up main line and a siding inside the station yard were pulled out — an act of deliberate tampering that became a notable security incident in the station's history.