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Travel Writer, Tetsuko no Tabi Manga Writer Hirohiko Yokomi Dies at 63
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
A funeral was held for close relatives only.
Yokomi is perhaps best known as the person who visited every train station in Japan. He had previously visited all of the JR stations in Japan by 1995, before moving on to also visiting private railway stations. He eventually achieved the feat of visiting every train station in Japan (9,843 train stations at the time) by 2005.
Yokomi worked as a storywriter on the Tetsuko no Tabi manga with illustrator Naoe Kikuchi. Kikuchi and Yokomi's main manga ran from 2001 to 2006 and had six volumes. A sequel Shin Tetsuko no Tabi manga ran in 2009 to 2013 for five volumes, and the Tetsuko no Tabi 3-Daime manga ran from 2016 to 2019 and had four volumes.
Each version of the manga had a different artist, and in each series, the nonfiction story followed Yokomi and the manga creator (who each had no interest in trains) as they traveled around Japan, with Yokomi serving as the guide.
The main manga inspired a 13-episode television anime series that aired in 2007.
Shogakukan's announcement about Yokomi's death stated, "For many years he served as a travel guide to introduce the charms of many railways from the viewpoint of the 'ultimate railway otaku' who visited every train station in Japan. For his many achievements, we express our deepest condolences."
Sources: Sunday GX magazine's X/Twitter account, Comic Natalie
