The Japanese side of the Japan-Korea Tunnel will be served by an area centered around four cities: Karatsu, Taku, and Fukuoka on the Higashimatsuura Peninsula in northern Kyushu, and Tosu, which connects Fukuoka and Taku at right angles. The Japanese side of the tunnel's entrance will be supported at four points. These four city regions form an approximately rectangular shape. By examining these physical connections, we would like to provide an overview of each city's history, topography, culture, industry, and more. Of the four city regions, Fukuoka, which will not be directly affected by the tunnel and is growing as a major city, will be excluded from this analysis, remaining solely as the mother city of the other three regions.
The Karatsu and Higashimatsuura region will serve as the gateway to the Japan-Korea Tunnel. This region has a long history of interaction with the continent and has been a point of contact with continental culture. At the same time, like Tsushima and Iki, it has been exposed to the danger of invasions by foreign enemies, such as the Mongol invasions. During Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasion of Korea, it served as a base, and the Nagoya Castle ruins are the remains of that base. In the Middle Ages, the Matsuura clan held power, and after the establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate, it remained largely under the control of the Nabeshima clan, an outside daimyo, until the Meiji Restoration. Although the Karatsu domain was small, it experienced frequent changes in daimyo, giving it a different character from the Ariake Sea side, which has fostered the strong-willed Karatsu character of today. The entire coastline is a ria coast with many inlets and inlets, blessed with scenic beauty and included in the Genkai Quasi-National Park. The route connecting Karatsu to Fukuoka via Sasebo from Saikai National Park and Unzen is an international tourist route.
The northern and western parts of the Higashimatsuura Peninsula are surrounded by a ria coast, while the interior of the peninsula is a wave-shaped table plateau known as a "plateau." The climate is mild with little rainfall and few rivers. Agriculture is the main industry, with a particularly high dependence on it in Hizen, Genkai, and Chinzei towns. There are many small-scale farms, and land productivity is low. Industries include food processing, general lumber manufacturing, and wood products. Karatsu City is the main industrial center of the region. The fishing industry is most active in Yobuko town, which has a fishing port, and is coastally dependent on fishing methods such as purse seine, agri seine, small bottom trawl, seine net fishing, and sardine fishing. In recent years, the cultivation of pearls, yellowtail, sea bream, abalone, and sea urchins has become popular. The Higashimatsuura Peninsula has yielded many excavated artifacts such as stone tools, pottery, and ancient jars, showing traces of ancestors from as far back as the Jomon period, and is also home to many legends and romantic stories. According to the "Records of Wei: Account of the Wa People," the region formed the "Mallu Kingdom" in the third century. However, as modern times progressed, its peninsula's characteristic of being a dead end in terms of transportation led to it being left behind in terms of economic and social development. Fortunately, however, its peninsula nature has allowed it to avoid being swallowed up by the wave of development, resulting in the existence of beautiful coastlines and undeveloped islands.
After the opening of the Japan-Korea Tunnel, the constraints will be reversed. As a gateway to the continent, it will be possible to leverage its resort potential and develop it as an international health and recreation zone. Karatsu City is also developing as an industrial city, utilizing its long-standing tradition of Karatsu ware pottery. Pottery is being reborn as the new ceramics industry. Furthermore, it is blessed with resources as a resort tourist city. Together with the Higashi-Matsuura region, it will be positioned as the "Genkai Coastal Resort."
As for future plans, the Yobuko-Chinzei zone, being directly beneath the entrance to the Japan-Korea Tunnel, will be developed into a world-class resort base with a super-luxury marina. Mooring ports for large cruisers, yachts, and motorboats will be established. On Kabeshima Island, a villa area will be formed with white buildings reminiscent of those found along the Mediterranean and Aegean coasts and islands in Europe. These luxury villa areas will be resorts that can cater not only to Japanese people but also to people from East Asia and Europe. Three- to four-story condominiums will be built around the marina, forming a marine shopping zone.
Additionally, detached villa areas will be built across the scenic coastal and inland areas. The gently undulating terrain of the Higashimatsuura Peninsula makes it ideal for golf courses. Forests and some farmland will be converted to build golf courses in several locations. Tennis courts, swimming pools, aerobics centers, and other facilities will also be built adjacent to the courses.
Taku City, located in the center of Saga Prefecture, is a basin surrounded by the Chikushi Mountains, with elevations ranging from 300 to 1,000 meters. Rivers originating from the surrounding mountains flow into the Taku River, which flows through the city's center. Mandarin orange cultivation is thriving at the foot of the mountains. Taku's history dates back to before the Meiji Restoration, when it prospered through coal mining. The Karatsu Line opened early, resulting in rapid growth during the Meiji, Taisho, and Showa periods. However, after the mines closed, the population plummeted, and the city began transforming into a rural industrial city, focusing on mountainside agriculture and utilizing former coal mine sites. With the completion of the Kyushu Transverse Expressway and the establishment of an interchange on the outskirts of Taku City, the city became a gateway to the center of the prefecture. This development holds the key to the city's development into the 21st century. The Confucius Temple, the oldest surviving Confucius temple in the world, is designated a National Important Cultural Property. Taku has long been a center of culture and education, and has the potential to develop into a "research and education city" in the future.
*Tosu Interchange (IC), a strategic point in Kyushu
Tosu City is the eastern gateway to Saga Prefecture. Bordering Fukuoka Prefecture, it is the junction of JR Kyushu's Nagasaki Main Line and Kagoshima Main Line, and has been a key transportation hub since the days of the Ritsuryo system. In recent years, it has become the most important land transportation hub in Kyushu, with one of Japan's largest interchanges on the Kyushu Expressway. In addition to its convenient transportation location, Tosu City has a thriving industry, and boasts the highest industrial shipment value in the prefecture, surpassing Saga City. Together with the neighboring city of Kurume, it has been designated the "Kurume-Tosu Technopolis," and is aiming to develop into one of Kyushu's leading new industrial regions.
East Asia is also a Confucian cultural sphere, so why not establish an "International Confucian University" or "Confucius University" in Taku and make it an international mecca for Confucianism? The faculties would include a Faculty of Business Administration, a Faculty of Politics, a Faculty of Human Studies, and a Faculty of Production Science, and create a town through industry-academia collaboration. Students would of course be recruited from all over East Asia.
Once the Japan-Korea Tunnel opens, Taku City will become a junction point with the Kyushu Trans-Island Expressway. This region enjoys a mild climate because the mountain range blocks the cold winds from the Sea of Japan. The area connecting Taku and Tosu will be developed to attract factories and research institutes for cutting-edge industries, creating a Taku-Tosu Silicon Valley that rivals or even surpasses Silicon Valley in California, USA. Industrial housing, sports facilities, and resort-style housing will be located in the surrounding areas, creating a work-life balance zone. The Yoshinogari Ruins, believed to be the ancient capital of Yamatai-koku, are an important site for tracing the roots of Japanese culture. A "Yamatai-koku History Museum" introducing ancient Japanese culture will be constructed here.
The impact and effects of the Japan-Korea Tunnel connecting Tsushima, Iki, and northern Kyushu will be immeasurable. This region needs to be developed as an integrated base square (a receiving base for a quadripolar structure) in East Asia. In other words, it will be necessary to create a master plan that is equivalent to a national land plan for the entire Kyushu region. Just as northern Kyushu did in ancient times, the completion of the Japan-Korea Tunnel will transform this region into a major hub for international exchange connecting Japan and Asia. In particular, East Asia is the most dynamic region in the 21st century, and its economic growth hinges on economic and technological exchange with Japan. Therefore, the importance of this international exchange hub, open to East Asia, cannot be overemphasized. Japan, which for a long time pursued a policy of "leaving Asia and joining Europe" since the Meiji Restoration, is now entering a new era of "leaving Europe and joining Asia."
Development and Outlook for the Northern Kyushu Region
Overview of the Japan-Korea Tunnel
