The Shuzenji Romney Railway (ロムニー鉄道, Romney Railway) is a 1.2 km, gauge ridable miniature railway located in Niji-no-Sato (Rainbow Park) in Izu, Shizuoka, on the Izu Peninsula in Japan. It is Japan's first 15-inch gauge railway. It is based on the English Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway on the English Channel coast in Kent, which opened in 1927. The railway operates using a mixture of steam and diesel locomotives and enclosed saloon carriages. Its primary two steam engines were built by the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway in Cumbria, England, and are based on that line's 1976 Northern Rock 2-6-2 steam locomotive. Its No. 2 locomotive Ernest W. Twining was acquired from the Fairbourne Railway in Wales when that line converted to gauge. There is also a small 15-inch gauge railway museum.
Locomotives
No.NameLiveryLocomotive typeWheel ArrangementBuilderYear builtStatus1Northern Rock IIHighland Railway greenSteam2-6-2Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway1989In traffic2Ernest W. TwiningDark blueSteam4-6-2G & S Co.1950Static display3John Southland IITwo-tone redDieselB-B DMTMA Engineering1988In traffic4CumbriaBrunswick greenSteam2-6-2Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway1992In traffic5City of BirminghamTwo-tone greenDiesel0-6-0 DMTMA Engineering1992Currently inactiveC11 328BlackSteam2-6-4TKanazawa Institute of Technology1995Static display
See also Minimum-gauge railway Joyful Train Rail transport in Japan
References
Hiroshi Naito, "Shuzenji Romney Railway in Niji-no-Sato, Rainbow Country" - Japanese Railway Society 虹の郷 ロムニー鉄道 - Japanese website about the railway ロムニー鉄道訪問記 - Visit to the railway in 2004 Video of the railway in December 2017
External links
Niji-no-Sato Niji-no-Sato Romney Railway