Saiin Station (Hankyu) Sai Station (Keifuku) (西院駅)
Located in Nishioji Shijo, Ukyo Ward, Kyoto City, Saiin Station and Sai Station are stops operated by the Hankyu Railway and the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd., respectively. 西院' is pronounced 'saiin' for the Hankyu Railway and 'sai' for the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.
Incidentally, the official description in hiragana for '西院' around this area is 'さいいん,' and lately it has taken the pronunciation 'saiin'; however, in the past most local people would pronounce '西院' as 'sai,' like the station name of the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.
Some people pronounce '西院' as 'sain' or 'saain,' which is assumed to have resulted from combinations of 'sai' and 'saiin.'
The stations are generally used as transfer stations by tourists from the Osaka area visiting Rokuon-ji Temple, etc., or by commuters going to Ritsumeikan University, etc.
Lines
Hankyu Kyoto Line (Saiin Station)
Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.
Arashiyama Main Line (Sai Station) A3
Hankyu Railway
The address of Saiin Station is 38-1, Saiin Kozanji-cho, Ukyo Ward. The station building and ticket gate are aboveground, located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Nishioji Shijo. Saiin Station is an underground facility with two platforms serving two tracks; the platforms are just under Shijo-dori Street. When the current station building was constructed, the construction of an underground passage connecting the east end of the platform for Osaka (underground) and Sai Station, as operated by the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd., and a ticket gate had been planned and put to work; however, the construction was eventually halted due to opposition by the local people working in the local shopping areas. Accordingly, the entrance to the underground passage is now closed.
Meanwhile, the underground passage extending from Kawaramachi Station connects to the aboveground passage between Saiin Station and Nishikyogoku Station. This underground passage, the first to be completed in the Kansai region, is designated as a Civil Engineering Heritage; over the exit of the passage there is a frame for the characters '天人併其功' ("Tenjin sono ko wo awasu"). It is said that the relief of an eagle, created when the underground passage was constructed, has continued to watch over the security of train operations.
Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.
The address of Sai Station is 16, Mibu Sennen-cho, Nakagyo Ward. The station is an aboveground facility with two separate platforms serving two tracks. There is a train depot fifty meters north of the station. The crossing near the station doesn't have a crossing gate, but a crossing alarm is in place. This type of crossing is unusual for such a busy area of the city. Because the alarm emits the sound of bells, many railway fans visit the crossing just to hear the sound.
Sai Station is the first and last station for the trains that operate mainly in the early morning and late evening.
Passenger use
The number of passengers per day in fiscal year 2005 was approximately 21,246 at Saiin Station, operated by the Hankyu Railway; and about 1,208 at Sai Station, operated by the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd. (as estimated from the Kyoto Prefecture Statistics Report).
Station surroundings
The Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd., depot
The Kyoto Saiin post office
Rhino Hotel Kyoto
Joshin Denki Co., Ltd., Kyoto Ichi-ban Kan
Kosan-ji Temple
AEON MALL Kyoto Hana (with shuttle-bus service)
Kyoto Municipal Junior College of Nursing
Cisco Asset Management Co., Ltd.
Bus stop
Nishioji Shijo
Kyoto City Bus
For AEON MALL Kyoto Hana
History
The station of the Hankyu Railway was opened as a temporary terminal on the Kyoto side of the Shinkeihan Railway. The station was then an aboveground facility with toothed platforms. In 1931, following its merger into the Keihan Electric Railway, the line was extended to Keihan Kyoto Station (Omiya Station) and the station was moved underground.
March 25, 1910: Sai Station of the Arashiyama Electric Tramway (the current Arashiyama Main Line, operated by the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.) was opened.
April 2, 1918: The station came under the operation of Kyoto Dento as a result of amalgamation.
November 1, 1928: Kyoto Saiin Station of the Shinkeihan Railway (currently the Hankyu Kyoto Line) was opened.
September 15, 1930: Kyoto Saiin Station of the Shinkeihan Railway came under the operation of the Keihan Electric Railway as a result of amalgamation.
March 31, 1931: Kyoto Saiin Station of the Keihan Electric Railway was moved underground and renamed Saiin Station.
March 2, 1942: Sai Station of the Kyoto Dento was transferred to the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.
October 1, 1943: Kyoto Saiin Station of the Keihan Electric Railway came under the operation of the Keihanshin Express Railway (the current Hankyu Railway) as a result of amalgamation.
Because the entire length of the effective platform was equal to only seven cars until the early 1980s, trains that consisted of eight cars (both inbound and outbound trains) had to keep the doors of the last car closed at the station in the direction of travel.
Today, the entire length of the effective platform is equal to ten cars, as occasionally used during the morning rush.
Adjacent stations
Kyoto Main Line
Limited Express
Limited express trains don't stop at Saiin Station.
Commuter Limited Express/Rapid Express
Katsura Station - Saiin Station - Omiya Station (Kyoto Prefecture)
Semi Express/Local
Nishikyogoku Station - Saiin Station - Omiya Station
Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd.
Arashiyama Main Line
Shijo-Omiya Station A1 - Sai Station A3 - Nishioji-Sanjo Station A4