Work to consolidate separate platforms of the so-called outer and inner loops of East Japan Railway's Yamanote Line was completed at Shibuya Station in Tokyo early Monday morning.
The clockwise service of the line, known as the outer loop, which had been suspended between Osaki and Ikebukuro stations on Saturday and Sunday due to track relocation work, resumed normal operations from the first train on Monday.
The partial suspension was the longest disruption to the Yamanote Line service since JR East was established in 1987 and about the same as the suspension of the inner loop in October.
Roughly 530,000 passengers were believed to have been impacted by the suspension, which included major stations such as Shinjuku, Harajuku and Shibuya.
On Monday, many passengers and railway fans were seen on the new platform, which is up to 3 meters wider, with trains arriving on both sides.
A sign was put up in the closed area formerly used for the outer loop showing JR East workers' appreciation for the platform, which had been used for 82 years.
"It is interesting to see a station being transformed just like that in a short period of time," said Takafumi Nose, a 36-year-old company worker from Tokyo, as he enthusiastically took pictures.
The creation of a single Yamanote Line platform, aimed at easing passenger congestion and increasing convenience for transfers, is part of ongoing construction work at Shibuya Station and the surrounding area.
The work for the entire station is expected be completed in the fiscal year beginning in April 2027, after work to make the Yamanote platform the same height as the platform for the Saikyo Line, which runs next to the Yamanote Line, and the building of a concourse are finished.