Jingu Bashi 神宮橋 | |
|---|---|
 The bridge on a rainy day, 2020 | |
| Coordinates | 35°40′11″N139°42′08″E / 35.6697°N 139.7023°E /35.6697; 139.7023 |
| Carries | Traffic |
| Crosses | Yamanote Line |
| Other name(s) | Shrine Bridge |
| Followed by | The original bridge |
| Characteristics | |
| Material | Reinforced concrete |
| Total length | 20.4-metre |
| Width | 29.1-metre |
| History | |
| Opened | 1982 |
| Location | |
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Jingūbashi (神宮橋,Jingūbashi), lit.Shrine Bridge, also known asHarajuku Bridge orHarajuku Cosplay Bridge, is a bridge that passes over theYamanote Line betweenHarajuku Station and the entrance to theMeiji Shrine inTokyo, Japan. Formerly apedestrian bridge, it is now open to traffic. With its wide pedestrian area, it is well known as a spot forcosplayers and fashion performers, which in turn led to it becoming a tourist attraction.
Jingūbashi is a 20.4-metre (67 ft)-long, 29.1-metre (95 ft)-wide bridge made out of reinforced concrete.[1] It dates from 1982, when it replaced the original bridge that had opened in September 1920. The original bridge was one of the first reinforced concrete bridges in Japan. The current bridge inherits the design and some of the elements of the original bridge, such as the ornamental railing pillars.[2]
TheHarajuku area is known internationally as a center of Japanese youth culture and fashion.[3] Jingu Bridge has become one of the locality's popular landmarks. Since the 1960s, it has attracted numerouscosplayers, performers, people dressed invisual kei,lolita fashion (sometimes in gothic variations), or similar outfits, and tourists.[4][5][6][7]
The area was pedestrian-only and closed to motor-vehicles until 1995; the opening of the area to motor vehicles has been credited with lessening the popularity of the area. Jingu Bridge itself has become somewhat less popular in the second decade of the 21st century, with a 2017CNN guide suggesting that "it's been noted that Harajuku Girls no longer gather in large numbers on Jingu Bridge ... these days".[8]
Media related toJingu Bashi at Wikimedia Commons