Minamikata Station (Miyazaki)

Minamikata Station (南方駅) is a passenger railway station located in the city of Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu and is on the Nichinan Line.

Lines
Minamikata Station is served by the Nichinan Line and is located 4.2 km from the starting point of the line at Minami-Miyazaki.

Layout
The station, which is unstaffed, consists of a side platform serving a single track at grade set in a largely residential area. There is no station building, only a shelter on the platform for waiting passengers.

History
The private Miyazaki Light Railway (宮崎軽便鉄道) (later renamed the Miyazaki Railway) opened the station on 31 October 1913 as an intermediate station on a line it had laid between Minami-Miyazaki and Uchiumi (now closed). The station closed when the Miyazaki Railway ceased operations on 1 July 1962. Subsequently, Japanese National Railways (JNR) extended its then Shibushi Line north from Kitagō towards Minami-Miyazaki on the same route and reopened Minamikata as an intermediate station on 8 May 1963. With the privatization of JNR on 1 April 1987, the station came under the control of JR Kyushu.

Passenger statistics
In fiscal 2016, the station was used by an average of 89 passengers (boarding only) per day.

Surrounding area

 * Miyazaki City Kunitomi Elementary School
 * Miyazaki City Hongo Elementary School
 * Miyazaki City Hongo Junior High School