The Former Sawayama Tunnel (旧佐和山トンネル) is an abandoned road tunnel in Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture, near the ruins of Sawayama Castle.
The documented history
Sources place the tunnel's completion in 1923 or 1924. The Shiga Prefecture Civil Engineering Centennial Chronology records it at 230.0 meters long, 4.5 meters wide, 7.5 meters high, built at a cost of ¥130,756. It is credited as an early work of engineer Tsuru Murata. The tunnel was bypassed and closed in 1955 when a new Sawayama Tunnel opened on National Route 8.
Current condition
Visits documented by road-history bloggers describe the entrances as obscured by vegetation, the interior partially flooded, and the south approach overgrown.
The ghost legend
Local ghost-story sites describe a ghost of a man with a broken neck near the exit, footsteps that follow visitors, and a crying baby heard inside. We could not verify any of this. No source ties the story to a named individual or accident from the tunnel's 32 years of active use. The nearby castle ruins (once home to Ishida Mitsunari) may lend the area a general aura of tragedy attached to the tunnel by association.
Can you visit: Partially. The tunnel is on unmaintained land with flooded and overgrown sections; visiting is possible but not officially sanctioned.
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