Lake Biwa Canal

Constructed during the Meiji Period the canal was originally designed for the transportation of lake water for drinking, irrigation and industrial purposes, but also provided for the conveyance of waterborne freight and passenger traffic.

To address this problem, the third Prefectural Governor of Kyoto, Kitagaki Kunimichi (北垣国道), advocated for the construction of a canal from Lake Biwa to provide both water for irrigation and industrial use as well as facilitate transportation of goods by a means of a navigable waterway.

Although canal based transport for commercial goods was found to be only marginally viable, Tanabe also had the opportunity to observe hydropower projects in Lowell and Holyoke, Massachusetts as well as at Aspen, Colorado.

After consulting with North American engineers, the idea of building a power station, fashioned after the Aspen hydroelectric plant and utilizing the high head streams available on the Lake Biwa Canal was put into practice.

[6] In order to make use of the power generated, construction of what was to become Japan's first tram line, the Kyoto Electric Railway (京都電気鉄道, Kyōto Denki Tetsudō), began in 1895.

Due to rapidly increasing demand for tap water and electricity, plans were made by Kikujiro Saigo, the second mayor of Kyoto City, for the construction of the second route (Canal No.

Due to the 36 meter difference in elevation between the upstream dam and its terminus, an inclined plane was built, which allowed boats to travel on land via the use of a flat car on which they were placed.