is a train station operated by Central Japan Railway Company

Central Japan Railway Company

The is the main railway company operating in the Chūbu region of central Japan. It is officially abbreviated in English as JR Central and in Japanese as . Its headquarters are located in the JR Central Towers in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture.The company's operational hub is Nagoya Station...

 (JR Central) and is located in the heart of Gifu

Gifu, Gifu

is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku period, various warlords, including Oda Nobunaga, used...

, Gifu Prefecture

Gifu Prefecture

is a prefecture located in the Chūbu region of central Japan. Its capital is the city of Gifu.Located in the center of Japan, it has long played an important part as the crossroads of Japan, connecting the east to the west through such routes as the Nakasendō...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. Along with Meitetsu Gifu Station

Meitetsu Gifu Station

is the main terminal of Nagoya Railroad in the city of Gifu, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. It is one of the two major train stations of the city along with JR Gifu Station....

, it is one of the two main rail stations in Gifu City.

History

The station first opened on January 21, 1887, when it was called Kanō Station (加納駅 Kanō-eki) and was primarily used for the transport of goods. On December 15, 1888, it became a passenger rail station, at which point its name was changed to Gifu Station. On July 22, 1913, the former Aichi Station building, which closed in 1909, was moved to the area that is now the south side of Gifu Station. This station was used until it was burned to the ground during the firebombings of Gifu City in 1945. On November 1, 1986, construction of the elevated rail lines began, with construction ending on March 2, 1996.

Currently, the north side of the station is undergoing extensive redevelopment. This redevelopment includes new bus boarding platforms, a new taxi boarding area, area beautification, walkways leading directly to the second floor of the station, and many other features. Construction is expected to be completed in August 2008.

Lines

The station consists of three island platforms serving six tracks for the Tōkaidō Main Line

Tokaido Main Line

The is the busiest trunk line of the Japan Railways Group , connecting Tōkyō and Kōbe stations. It is long, not counting its many freight feeder lines around the major cities...

 and Takayama Main Line

Takayama Main Line

is a Japanese railway line between Gifu Station in Gifu and Toyama Station in Toyama, operated by Central Japan Railway Company and West Japan Railway Company . The line directly links Chūkyō Metropolitan Area and Hokuriku region in a shorter distance, but slower than to use Tōkaidō Shinkansen...

.

Bus Boarding Platforms

On the north side of JR Gifu Station, there are bus boarding platforms for all of the bus lines belonging to Gifu Bus, Co., Ltd. There are 15 bus boarding platforms in all, with 12 serving bus lines to different parts of Gifu and its surrounding municipalities. The first two platforms are only for alighting and the last one is currently not being used.

Adjacent stations