池袋西口民衆駅の計画と建設

Abstract

This paper will elucidate the planning and construction process of the Ikebukuro West General Public Station completed in 1951, and will review the 55 stations around the country that were constructed as General Public Stations. It will also classify the stations according to core planning, construction ownership, and division of construction cost burden to evaluate the status of the Ikebukuro West General Public Station, which was planned by Japanese National Railways as a pilot project for developing General Public Stations. During postwar reconstruction, since Japanese National Railways prioritized the devastated rail lines and the establishment of new railcars in order to focus on restoring the decreased transportation capacity, not enough funding was available for rebuilding the railway station buildings, and their thorough reconstruction was thus postponed. Therefore, a method for the smooth reconstruction of railway station buildings using private investment was introduced, whereby the buildings were opened to the public, and businesses such as stores, restaurants, and barbershops were incorporated to increase the convenience of the station to the extent that these businesses would not pose a hindrance to railway passengers. This was the concept of the General Public Station. Until the end of the war, the construction of railway station buildings was generally limited to private railway terminals in major cities. However, the postwar establishment of the General Public Station model allowed railway station buildings to be constructed in regional cities across Japan. The General Public Station model made possible the transition from railway station buildings being constructed at Japanese National Railway stations to railway station buildings being constructed throughout the country. A central figure in the discussion of planning the Ikebukuro West General Public Station is the Japanese National Railway architect Shigeru Ito. Ito developed the concept of General Public Stations within Japanese National Railways. After resigning from his job at Japanese National Railways, he became the vice president of Japan Railway Station Corporation, where he promoted the planning and construction of the Ikebukuro West General Public Station. In addition, the area planned for the construction of the Ikebukuro West General Public Station included the war-damage reconstruction and land readjustment project area, so construction could not be initiated until the re-plotting of the land was confirmed. Therefore, the construction of the Ikebukuro West General Public Station bears a clear relationship to the restoration of land development through re-plotting. Beyond this, this research classifies General Public Stations into two types: “Regional City Type,” “Capital Area Intra-City Transit Terminal Type” and “ Major Inter-City Transit Terminal Type.” The Ikebukuro West General Public Station is classified as a Capital Area Intra-City Transit Terminal Type.