Photo= Passengers enjoy the scenery from aboard the tram which has resumed operation (March 1, Nishikyo Ward, Kyoto)

Connecting Kyoto City and Kameoka City, Kyoto Prefecture, along the Hozu River, Sagano Romantic Train, a sightseeing tram managed by Sagano Scenic Railway Co., Ltd., restarted operation on March 1, after a two-month interval. Despite the ill-timed rain, the tram full of tourists, parents and children slowly began its run along the gorge, which is awaiting the arrival of spring.

At 9:00 a.m. the tram filled with 80 passengers departed Saga Torokko Station in Ukyo Ward. Newly-installed potbelly stoves were unveiled in the train and passengers enjoyed the scenery along with hot rice cakes toasted in the stoves. Ms. Ayako Taniguchi, a civil servant from Shimabara City, Nagasaki Prefecture, said in a lilting voice, "I feel great with such beautiful scenery. This will be a good memory of my trip."

The tram opened in 1991. Last year the number of annual passengers exceeded one million for the first time, even though it stopped running during typhoons. Every year, tram service is suspended from the end of December to the end of February for carriage and track maintenance. During this year's hiatus, new stairs and a new elevator were built at Kameoka Torokko Station.

Tram service will continue until December 29. There is no service on Wednesdays except on holidays. The tram will run daily during sightseeing seasons.