Day 14 – Tsukuba Station
Tsukuba Station (つくば駅, -eki) is a train station on the Tsukuba Express line in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan.
The station is the terminus of the Tsukuba Express line, and is located at the heart of the “science city” of Tsukuba. It is also situated near the central bus terminal. Its station number is 20.
Tsukuba (つくば市, Tsukuba-shi?) is a city located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. It is known as the location of the Tsukuba Science City (筑波研究学園都市, Tsukuba Kenkyū Gakuen Toshi) a planned city developed in the 1960s.
As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 207,394 and a population density of 730 persons per km². Its total area is 284.07 km². Tsukuba is sometimes considered part of the Greater Tokyo Area.
Mount Tsukuba, particularly well-known for its toad-shaped Shinto shrine, is located near the city. Also found there is the Tsukuba Circuit, a popular short racetrack which hosts the D1 Grand Prix and other motorsports events.
In contrast to many of the othe rail stations I’d visited, the Tsukuba Station is located in what can honestly be called a “suburban” area of Tokyo. The density is akin to the downtown areas of boomburbs in the US like Plano or Garland, TX. Hence, the morphology employs a more direct suburban mall form and the fact that it is even a rail station at all is largely hidden. That said, it still tends to operate in the same manner as other rail stations, being a clear focal node of the community.
