A sub-five-hour bullet train trip from Tokyo to Niseko and a highway passing through the region are getting closer.
Japan Railways is in the process of connecting its shinkansen (bullet train) network from Tokyo to Sapporo via Kutchan, which is just 15 minutes drive from Niseko’s main resort hub Hirafu. Meanwhile NEXCO (Nippon Expressway Company) is building a highway network that will connect Kutchan with Otaru (the next major city alongside Sapporo).
Currently the shinkansen network extends to the city of Hakodate on the southern tip of Hokkaido, three hour’s drive south of Niseko. From Tokyo the train takes just over four hours and travels from the mainland via undersea tunnel. The 211km connection between Hakodate and Sapporo via the local Kutchan Station is expected to be completed in 2030, with the Tokyo-Niseko trip to take 4 hours 36 minutes – faster and arguably more convenient than domestic flights plus bus connection. The extension is expected to cost ¥12.3 trillion, and 76 per cent of the route is tunnels.
Road access to Niseko is also expected to become quicker and easier. NEXCO is now extending its highway network along a very similar route to the existing local train network connecting Otaru to Kutchan (Hakodate Line). Phase one between Otaru and Yoichi opens this year, with the 39km Yoichi to Kutchan extension to follow but no expected completion date announced. Once complete, it will allow a faster, easier, safer trip in all seasons.