As with any adventure, International Students step out on to a new step in their travels. 

A part of getting about and finding new experiences is "how to" do things. 

In this series of blog posts, our International Student Ambassador (ISA) will take you on a detailed journey through the life around Biwako-Kusatsu Campus (BKC)*.  (Part 3)

All information on this page is as of mid-summer 2020. 
 *The College of Information Science and Engineering will be relocated to Osaka Ibaraki Campus in April 2024. Visit our website for details

Hi Everyone, welcome back to the [How to] A bus guide. This guide is for those studying and living at the Biwako-Kusatsu Campus (BKC) of Ritsumeikan University. I remember the first time I took a bus in Minami-Kusatsu;

So, I decided to write a sort of bus guide series in:

• Part 1: [How To] A Bus Guide (Part 1): Minami-Kusatsu Station to BKC
• Part 2: [How To] A Bus Guide (Part 2): Minami-Kusatsu to AEON Mall Kusatsu
• Part 3: [How To] A Bus Guide (Part 3): MInami-Kusatsu to BKC I-House [this blog]
  
  
  

  Minami-Kusatsu Station to BKC I-House

Let's Begin this journey!

There are two ways to get to BKC I-house, firstly via the university, you can walk between I-house and the campus by using a dedicated path that crosses over the hill at the back of the campus. Secondly, by bus direct from Minami-Kusatsu station. Normally if you do not have any business at the campus you would want to just go directly to I-house by bus, instead of getting off at the campus, and then make the long trek across the campus and over the hill to get to I-house. There is still a hill to walk up even when you take the bus (since I-house is located on a hill) but the route is shorter and less demanding.

Figure 1: Dedicated path over a hill to the campus from I-house

This is Part 3 of the Bus Guide series where I will show you how to go from Minami-Kusatsu station to Ritsumeikan BKC I House. In Part 1, I showed you how to take a bus from Minami-Kusatsu station to BKC. I also explained how to use the ticket system on the OHMI buses. In Part 2, I showed you how to take a bus from Minami-Kusatsu station to AEON Mall Kusatsu. The bus stop for BKC I House is located on the East exit side, and it is the bus stop number 5.

Figure 2: Bus stop number 5

This bus stop is for several routes that go to different places, so make sure you have the right bus. The bus that you want will display 飛島グリーンヒル (Tobishima Green Hill). This is the destination you want. If you are not sure of the kanji, check the bus time table, it will look something like in Figure 3 in the first column.

Figure 3: Bus time table for Bus stop number 5

As you can see, there are two bus routes that go to Tobishima Green Hill. One goes through かがやき通り(Kagayaki Street) and the other pass through パナソニック東口（Panasonic East Entrance). You may take either one, as they would converge at Tobishima Green Hill. Take note that the bus that passes-through Panasonic East Entrance will also make a stop at BKC. So, in addition to the bus route I showed in Part 1, you could also take this bus to the campus, but it is not as regular as the buses at bus stop number 3.

Figure 4: Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop.

You have two choices of bus stops to get off the bus. First is the 松ヶ丘三丁目(Matsugaoka-san-chome) bus stop which is located near the junction to BKC I House, at the foot of the hill. This means that you would be walking from the bottom all the way to the top of the hill, where BKC I House is located.

Figure 5: Aoyama-go-chome bus stop

Second choice is the 青山五丁目(Aoyama-go-chome bus stop), which is located across the street from フレンドマート(Friend Mart supermarket.) Personally, I find this bus stop more convenient than the Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop, because you could stop by at the supermarket before heading back to BKC I House. Another advantage for getting off here is that you have access to the Matsugaoka-kitajido Park Walkway located behind Friend Mart. It links to the road that leads to BKC I House, at the half-way point. This means that you only walk half way up the hill to BKC I House, in comparison to walking from the bottom of the hill, when you get off at Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop.

Figure 6:Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop for buses heading into town.

BKC I-House to Minami-Kusatsu Station

To get a bus from BKC I House to Minami-Kusatsu station, you may get on a bus at the same bus stops. In this case, it is more practical to get a bus from the Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop, since all buses will stop here first before they head for the bus stop at Friend Mart. So, when there are a lot of people waiting at Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop, the bus will be packed by the time it reaches the bus stop at Friend Mart. The location for the Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop for buses heading into town is on the opposite side of the road as shown in Figure 6.

Figure 7: Aoyama-go-chome / Friend Mart bus stop.

Another way to the Minami-Kusatsu station is from the bus stop at Friend Mart, located exactly in front of the supermarket. If you have luggage, it is advisable to use this bus stop instead of the Matsugaoka-san-chome bus stop, because here you have shade and seats.

This brings us to the end of the Bus Guide series. I hope these three articles would be able to make it easier for new students to get around by the bus.

See you around!

Zam

Blog was written in Summer of 2020.  Thank you Zam for these great bus guides. Students who want to visit BKC Campus, can take these guides when visiting the campus.