Wakasa Railway Hatto River Bridge No. 2

Ten Spans Across the Hattō River

Wakasa Railway Hatto River Bridge No. 2 (若桜鉄道第二八東川橋梁, Hattō-gawa) is a 128-metre, ten-span steel girder bridge that carries the Wakasa Railway over the Hattō River at Tokumaru in Yazu Town, Tottori Prefecture; it was completed in 1930 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 8 July 2008.

It stands 2.2 kilometres west of Tampi Station. Only Bridge No. 1 is longer, but No. 2 has more spans than any other bridge on the line. Like its siblings it is a deck plate girder bridge, the rails laid on top of the steel beams.

Two lengths of girder are used, 13 metres and 6.7 metres, and they came from three different manufacturers. Finding three makers' work lined up in a single structure is the quiet appeal of Wakasa Railway Hatto River Bridge No. 2.

Why It Was Registered

Its registration cites its contribution to the historic landscape. The girders are described as the Tatsu 540 standard type set out in a 1919 directive, the same family as Bridges No. 1 and No. 3. It was built on the second construction section, Hayabusa to Wakasa, in time for the full opening in December 1930, and the Agency for Cultural Affairs notes how closely it keeps its opening-day appearance.

Standard girders ordered from several firms and assembled into one crossing: that was how Japan bought bridges while it was pushing railways into every valley. Ten spans with little alteration make this bridge a clear surviving example.

What to Look For

Seen side-on, the mix of long and short girders changes the spacing of the piers and gives the bridge an uneven rhythm. Maker's plates and the shape of the stiffeners on the girder webs are the clues for telling one manufacturer's work from another's.

The railway's guide mentions a natural waterfall nearby known locally as Tokumaru Dondo, and a broad riverbed with open views of the surrounding hills. From the gravel bars, the line of girders spans the whole width of the river.

Visiting

This is a working railway bridge, so the deck and track are closed. By train you cross it between Hattō and Tampi stations, with Tokumaru Station in between. From outside, it is seen from nearby roads and the riverbank. Stay off the gravel bars when the river is high.

Keep a good distance from the rails for photographs and do not cross farmland or private land. Travel to the line and tickets are covered on the Wakasa Railway page.