# Kusatsu Onsen Bus Terminal

Kusatsu Onsen Bus Terminal (Japanese: 草津温泉バスターミナル, Hepburn: Kusatsu Onsen Basu Tāminaru), or Kusatsu Onsen Station (草津温泉駅, Kusatsu Onsen-eki), is a bus terminal located near Kusatsu Onsen in the town of Kusatsu, Agatsuma District, Gunma Prefecture, Japan. It is managed by Kusatsu Bus Terminal Company in a joint venture between JR Bus and the Kusatsu municipal government. JR Bus, Seibu Bus, and Kusakaru Kotsu operate bus services at the terminal.

## History

From the Taishō era until World War II, many railway lines were constructed around Japan, though the country's acute topography led many bus routes to substitute train lines. The Joshu Kusatsu Line was one of many bus lines connecting Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi Station with Kusatsu Onsen, Yudanaka Station, Karuizawa Station, and Mount Kusatsu-Shirane.
The bus terminal was opened on 11 December 1935 as Joshu Kusatsu Station (上州草津駅, Jōshū Kusatsu-eki) with the commencement of bus service on the Joshu Kusara Line (上州草津線, Jōshū Kusatsu-sen) to Joshu Otsu Station (上州大津駅, Jōshū Ōtsu-eki) in Naganohara. The "Joshu" in the name was intended to avoid confusion with Kusatsu Station in Shiga Prefecture on the Tōkaidō Main Line.
The bus terminal was renamed to Kusatsu Onsen Station on 1 June 1962, following the closure of the Kusatsu Onsen train station.

## Station layout

The main concourse and gates (of which there are 9) are on the 2nd floor, along with a ticket office, internet terminals, vending machines, and a coffee and souvenir shop. There is a restaurant and tourist information desk on the 1st floor and a hot spring library on the 3rd floor.
There is a MARS ticket office operated by JR East, which sells railway tickets (including limited express tickets) for use at the nearby Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi Station, as well as tickets for the bus service that connects the Kusatsu Onsen Bus Terminal with Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi Station. The ticket office also sells tickets for Seibu Bus and Kusakaru Kotsu bus services.

## Bus services

| Gate No. | Name | Intermediate stops | Terminal | Company | Note |
| 1 | Charter and express buses | Charter and express buses | Charter and express buses | Charter and express buses | Charter and express buses |
| 2, 3, 4 | Kusatsu Line | Joshu Otsu | Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi Station | JR Bus Kanto | Passengers with a valid Japan Rail Pass are able to ride for free. |
| 5 | Joshu Yumeguri expressway bus | Ikaho Onsen, Nerima Station, Shinjuku Highway Bus Terminal | Tokyo Station | JR Bus | |
| 5 | Tokyo Yumeguri expressway bus | | Tokyo Station | JR Bus | |
| 5 | Shibuya-Karuizawa/Kusatsu Line expressway bus | Futako-tamagawa Station | Shibuya Station | Ueda Bus, Tokyu Transsés, Keio Bus | |
| 5 | Yokohama/Shin-Yokohama - Karuizawa/Kusatsu Line expressway bus | Shin-Yokohama Station, Yokohama Station | Tama-plaza Station | Ueda Bus, Tokyu Bus, Sotetsu Bus | |
| 5 | Tamagawa-josui/Tachikawa Line expressway bus | Tamagawa-Jōsui Station | Tachikawa Station | Chikuma Bus | |
| 5 | Blue Liner Kusatsu Onsen expressway bus | Takasaki Station, Kawagoe Station | Ōmiya Station (Saitama) | Koei Kotsu |
| 5 | Dts Line expressway bus | Yashio Station, Ōsaki Station | Bus Terminal Tokyo Yaesu | Dts creation | At Yashio Station, passengers are able to transfer onto Shirakobato (bound for Narita International Airport and operated by Tobu Bus Central), or Tsukuba (bound for Tsukuba Station and operated by Kantō Railway). |
| 6 | Shirane-kazan Line | Sesshōkawara | Shirane-kazan | Kusakaru Kotsu, JR Bus Kanto | Suspended during winter. Passengers with a valid Japan Rail Pass are able to ride for free, with the exception of Kusakaru Kotsu-operated services. |
| 6 | Express Bus | Shirane-kazan, Shibu Toge | Nagano Station | Nagano Electric Railway | Suspended in winter. |
| 6 | Asama Shirane-kazan Line | Manza-Kazawaguchi Station | Karuizawa Station | Seibu Kankō Bus | |
| 7 | Karuizawa Sennoiri Kusatsu Line | Shirane-kazan, Manzaonsen, Manza-Kazawaguchi Station, Onioshidashi-en | Karuizawa Station | Seibu Bus | |
| 7 | Express Kusakaru Line | Kita-Karuizawa Station | Karuizawa Station | Kusakaru Kotsu | |
| 7 | Kusakaru Hospital Line | Nishi-Agatsuma Welfare Hospital | Karuizawa Station | Kusakaru Kotsu | Bound for Kita-Karuizawa Station during winter. |
| 7 | Asama Shirane-kazan Line | Manza-Kazawaguchi Station, Sennoiri | Karuizawa Station | Seibu Kankō Bus | |
| 8, 9 | Kusatsu Onsen town buses | Circular route | Kusatsu Onsen Bus Terminal | JR Bus Kanto | Fares at a flat rate of 100 yen. |

## Former train station

Located approximately 400 m (0.25 mi) south of the current Kusatsu Onsen Bus Terminal, the original Kusatsu Onsen Station (草津温泉駅, Kusatsu Onsen-eki) was a train station on the Kusakaru Electric Railway Line that operated from 1926 through 1962. The site of the former station has since been turned into a park, with a monument dedicated to the station.