Tokyo is a super-high density city. The city area (23 special wards) has a population density of 15,471 people per square kilometer as of June, 2022. Tokyo has been spreading into the suburbs, air and underground. Subways are a typical spreading example in this mega-city. A total of 329 kilometers on 13 lines are operating. Most of them are underground, but there are several exceptions. Look at the top picture as an example. It's Higashi-Ojima station on the subway Toei-Shinjuku line, and located above ground. Why?
It's because the track has to cross three rivers one after another in this area. They're Kyu-Nakagawa, Arakawa and Nakagawa rivers. Construction cost of the underground track was estimated very high due to poor ground. Instead, an elevated track was cheaper. The only problem was, there weren't enough premises for a station. The best solution was to construct the station right above the river.
On December 21st, 1978, Higashi-Ojima station was completed right above Kyu-Nakagawa river. Two station entrances were opened on both sides of the river. They're very convenient for local people, who live in a giant public apartment complex in front of the station. I like this station as passengers can enjoy the river scenery from the platform. In addition, there're several public parks around the station. It's in a veritable urban oasis surrounded by greenery that expresses the beauty of the seasons.
Higashi-Ojima was designated as one of "the 100 Distinctive Stations in Kanto District" by the Ministry of Transport in 2000.
