Hiroshima Electric Railway (Hiroden) will revise its timetable with changes to bus stops on Sunday, August 3, 2025, in line with the opening of the “Ekimae Ohashi Route,” which will allow trains to run directly into the Hiroshima Station building.
Stop relocation, establishment, closure, and suspension
The 1.1km Ekimae Ohashi Route will begin operation on Sunday, August 3, starting from the Hiroshima Station stop, which will be relocated to the second floor of the station building “Minamoa,” which is directly connected to the JR Hiroshima Station ticket gates, passing through the Inari-machi intersection and connecting to the Hijiyama-cho intersection. The routes of lines 1, 2, and 6 heading towards Kamiyacho, and line 5 heading towards Hijiyama will be changed, shortening travel time by about 4 minutes.
The “Matsukawa-cho” stop will be newly established between Inari-machi and Hijiyama-shita on the new route, while the Enkobashicho stop, which will no longer be served by trains, will be closed on August 2 (Sat). The stops at Matoba-cho and Danbara 1-chome will be suspended, but boarding and alighting are scheduled to resume around spring 2026 when the construction of the circular route is completed. In addition, the “designated transfer stop” for travel between Kamiyacho and Hijiyama will change from Matoba-cho to Inari-machi.
New melodies inside the trains and at the tram stops
To increase the transportation capacity of services departing and arriving at Hiroshima Station, the number of large rollingstocks operating on Line 1 will increase, and the number of services on Lines 1 and 2 will be increased during weekday rush hours. In addition, two new “express” services will be set up on Line 1 from Hiroshima Station to Hiroshima Port during the 7am hours on weekdays. During the trial operation until December 31 (Wed), the service will pass through the stops of Kanayama-cho, Ebisu-cho, and Tate-machi, shortening the travel time by one minute and improving the speed of travel to Hatchobori and Kamiya-cho.
The new Hiroden route map with the Ekimae Ohashi Route has revised station numbering and the route colors used on direction signs and other items. The current orange color of Line 1 will be changed to light blue, which evokes the image of the sea of Hiroshima Port, making it easier to distinguish from the red of Line 2. In addition, the melodies played inside the trains and at some stops will be new original songs created by local singer-songwriter Nikamoto Rika, and English language broadcasts aimed at foreign tourists will also be strengthened.
