History
Tanigashira Station opened on 11 May 1913 as the new eastern terminus of the Japanese Government Railways Miyazaki Line, which had been extended in stages from Yoshimatsu via Kobayashi. On 15 December 1923 the stretch between Yoshimatsu and Miyakonojō, including Tanigashira, was redesignated as part of the new Nippō Main Line. On 6 December 1932 the same stretch was split off again and named the Kitto Line, with Miyakonojō as its starting point. Freight handling ended in 1962 and baggage handling in 1984; the introduction of electronic block control in November 1986 made the station unstaffed. It passed to JR Kyushu at privatisation on 1 April 1987.
History summarized from Japanese & English Wikipedia · last reviewed 2026-05-22.
Notes
Although the Kitto Line is not electrified, Tanigashira's yard carries an overhead catenary and supports for it: the wires are kept de-energised and used only as a hands-on training rig for JR Kyushu's electric-power maintenance staff.