Yama-sen Railway Bridge is a double-wallen truss bridge made in England, which was originally built over the Sorachi River in 1897 as the "First Sorachi River Bridge" on the Kamikawa Line of the Hokkaido Government Railway, and was moved to its present location in 1923 as an exclusive light railway for Oji Paper.
The light railway operated from 1908 to 1951, and the name "Yama-sen" comes from the fact that the railroad running from Tomakomai to Hidaka along the sea was called "Umi-line" and the railroad running toward Lake Shikotsu was called "Yama-sen.
From around 1922, ordinary travelers were allowed to use the light railway, but since it was operated for the purpose of transporting materials, it is said that the back of the ticket read, "Danger of human life is not guaranteed.
In August 1951, the light railroads were discontinued due to rapid road construction, and the mountain railway bridge also ended its role as a railroad bridge. Later, in 1967, the bridge was donated to Chitose City by Oji Paper as a symbol of Lake Shikotsu, and has been used as a road bridge and pedestrian bridge for many years.
The bridge, which had deteriorated markedly, was rebuilt after three years of dismantling and restoration work by the city beginning in 1995. In November 2007, the reborn Yamasen Bridge was recognized as a Heritage of Industrial Modernization by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as "a group of modern industrial heritage that tells the story of the paper manufacturing industry that expanded into Hokkaido with the aim of achieving domestic self-sufficiency in paper production. Furthermore, in November 2008, the site was recognized as "Selected Civil Engineering Heritage" by the Japan Society of Civil Engineers for its engineering and historical value.