Japan Loses Another Rail-Ferry Link: Nankai Ferry to Exit Wakayama-Tokushima Route in 2028
- Nankai Ferry will withdraw from the Wakayama-Tokushima route by March 2028
- It is one of Japan's last surviving rail-connected ferry journeys
- Fuel costs, crew shortages and bridge competition made it unsustainable
- Eastern Shikoku's link to Kansai will lean further on bridges and air
Nankai Ferry announced it will withdraw from the Wakayama–Tokushima route by the end of March 2028, severing one of Japan's last rail-connected ferry crossings—the seamless train-to-ship journey from Osaka's Namba to Shikoku that carried echoes of the old national railway ferry era.
The arithmetic is familiar: surging fuel prices, an aging and shrinking pool of crew, vehicle traffic lost to the Akashi Kaikyo and Seto bridges, and tourism too thin to fill the gap. Short-haul ferry routes across Japan have been disappearing for a decade; Nankai's survival this long was the exception.
For eastern Shikoku the loss is practical, not just nostalgic—Tokushima's direct corridor to Kansai closes, pushing freight and passengers onto longer bridge routes. Whether local governments subsidize a successor or a reduced tourist service is the next battle. Travelers wanting the train-plus-ferry experience have until March 2028.