Chichibu Railway Park, Railway park near Mitsumineguchi Station, Chichibu, Japan.
SL Turntable Park (formerly Chichibu Railway Vehicle Park) occupies the former siding site inside Mitsumineguchi Station in Chichibu, Saitama. Most of the grounds are lawn, with benches around the turntable used to turn steam locomotive C58 363, several newly planted trees, and an open gravel area for events. The entrance lies just across the level crossing on the station's east side, and a small pale-beige station building with a dark low-pitched roof stands at the end of a gravel path.
The park opened on 17 March 1989 as the Chichibu Railway Vehicle Park, built for the railway's 90th anniversary on a disused siding at Mitsumineguchi Station. It closed in April 2019, and most of the site was cleared; it reopened on 23 July 2020 as the SL Turntable Park, keeping the turntable used to turn C58 363.
The park opened in 1989 as the Chichibu Railway Vehicle Park, and the railway's own signs called it "Railway Vehicle Park". Since 2021 it has hosted the Wakuwaku Railway Festa each year in mid-May. The site is free to enter and open daily from 9:00 to 16:00.
The park is accessible on foot with pathways connecting different exhibition areas. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended since you will spend time moving between displays, and paths can become slippery when wet.
The park opened in 1989 as the Chichibu Railway Vehicle Park, displaying retired Chichibu Railway cars outdoors on two sidings without roofs or walls. The vehicles, including electric locomotives, passenger cars and freight wagons, were dismantled and removed between May and July 2019. The site reopened on 23 July 2020 as the SL Turntable Park, keeping the turntable used to turn steam locomotive C58 363.
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