Japan’s Mobile Public: Transportation

By Nick Stadnyk, Mickey Alterman and Ilya Shor

Japan is a mountainous archipelago; and with such a huge population, habitable space is limited and costly, and much of the country is very crowded. Communications and transportation systems are therefore always big issues for policymakers at national, regional, and local levels. The present transportation and communications infrastructure reflects the demand for a system that can transport people, goods and information quickly and effectively, and Japan enjoys an international lead in such areas as the development of high-speed rail networks and the creation of a national-fiber grid. Japan also enjoys exceptional taxi, trolley and bus service, as well as incredible subway systems throughout its cities and big freeways connecting those cities. With its very efficient, well organized and many public transportation systems, it is no wonder that many countries admire Japan’s productivity and its very mobile public.

Japan is tied together by a complex and efficient railway network, which now moves multitudes of people a day, first began to emerge in the 1900’s. In 1949 the Japanese National Railways, also known as the JNR, was established by order of the Occupation authorities as a public corporation separate from the Ministry of Transport. In 1985, the JNR suffered through a company disaster, ending up in the public company breaking up. In 1986, after privatization, the Railway Information Systems Company, more commonly known as the JR system, was created. The JR was established separately from all other railway companies at the time. Using Tokyo as its center, the JR helps transport millions of people everyday. For a small fare ranging from about 1 US dollar to about 4 dollars, you can go to a wide array of locations. Although extremely useful it is constantly undergoing modernization and even expansion. This has not hindered the JR’s success as revenue has steadily increased from1989 to the present. Undoubtedly the organization is still looking to improve their system by expanding their reach throughout all of Japan. In fact, the completion of the Seikan tunnel in 1988, which linked Honshu and Hokkaido, brought Hokkaido into direct communication with the rest of Japan. Along with the bullet train, the JR, makes up 70 % of Japanese trains, while the other 30 % are run by private companies. The future forecast for the JR line looks to be complete sunshine with no hovering clouds within close range. In a country changing so often, the JR train system looks to be a cornerstone of Japanese transportation for years to come.

Japan’s main island is also covered by a huge network of high speed railway lines to move masses of people quickly and efficiently across the country. These high speed trains are called bullet trains, or shinkansen. The first shinkansen was built in 1964, and it moved west from Tokyo to Osaka and eventually beyond. This was the world’s first high-speed train, obtaining speeds well over a hundred miles per hour. Nowadays the shinkansen are one of the fastest modes of transportation in the world.

There are three types of shinkansen that operate on the westbound lines. The first type is the Nozomi, which are the most modem (introduced in the 90’s) and stop only at the most important stations. They are mainly aimed at the business traveler who needs to save as much time as possible. The next type is the Hikari, which stop a bit more frequently and at some secondary stations, these are the trains that take about 3 hours to get from Tokyo to Osaka. Lastly is the Kodama, which is the local train among the bullet trains. Although stopping at all secondary stations and being the oldest type of train they still are among the fastest trains in the world. All trains run with incredible punctuality and frequency, every 15 minutes between Tokyo and Osaka, covering 343 miles on this run in a mere three hours, sometimes less.

In 1982 the first northbound lines from Tokyo were completed. There are five different shinkansen on these lines, and some are currently under construction for extensions. When these extensions are complete, all of Japans major cities will be connected as well as three of the four islands.

While being very practical trains, the shinkasen are very expensive. If one wanted to travel from Tokyo to Nagoya (which is one stop) it is about one hundred dollars. Although they are so expensive, the trains are very fast and they also frequently come to each station so there is no really long wait for a train, and they are really worth the money as well as being a very pleasant and smooth ride.

The future of these high speed trains remains very optimistic. Extensions are being made all over the place to eventually connect all big cities and all four islands. Also major experiments are being conducted, testing the use of magnetic levitation technology. A “Maglev” train will be able to obtain speeds even greater than the bullet trains and will eliminate all friction and vibration between the train and track.

Every aspect of life Japan is given the utmost care, so it is no wonder that even the taxi service is treated with this kind of respect. Unlike the cab drivers of New York City, who do not know the meaning of the words “traffic laws” and will sooner than anything drive you to the wrong spot due to the language barrier; the cab drivers of Japan stand alone. It was due to the stereotype mentioned in the previous sentence that Aoki Sadao started his own taxi company, MK taxi, which is now the most prominent in all of Japan. Initially starting out as Minami Taxis, the company merged with local rival drivers Katsura Taxis in 1961. From the beginning, Sadao, a Japanese citizen of Korean descent placed a great emphasis on presenting a polite, smart face to public to encourage the belief that MK was a cut above the average Japanese taxi firm. In 1975, MK began to hire college graduates, so that their drivers would be bilingual, and thus would attract foreign tourists. In 1981, MK taxi began instituting lower fare policies. The theory was that cheaper fares-would bring in more customers-which would bring a larger over all profit. By 1993, the result of this investment was obvious. Currently, MK offers an incredible fare of just 500Yen for the first 1.8 kilometers of the excursion. To the average cost conscious traveler, taxis are an expensive and little attractive alternative to the efficient public transportation system of Japan’s larger cities, at least during daytime and evenings. In smaller cities and the countryside, however, public transportation is often much less efficient, and taking a taxi from the nearest train station to your final destination, for example, can be a good choice. Most train and bus services in Japan stop around midnight, resulting in a sudden increase in the demand for taxis around that time - especially on weekends. On Friday and Saturday nights, long line-ups at taxi stands in front of important train stations are not uncommon, and waiting times can be long.

However, this is not the only type of transportation present in Japan. A popular form of transportation is the veto-taxi, a German creation that has been seen in Kyoto since last May and on Tokyo streets since last October. Basically, it’s an aerodynamically designed bicycle-taxi--it uses no gas and travels solely by pedal power. Fares start at 3OO for the first half kilometer, and then go up by ¥50 for each additional 100 meters. The velotaxis are engaging, environmentally friendly, and definitely eye-catching.

Another way to travel by taxi is to take a tour of Tokyo in one of the jazz taxis, a fleet of three Hyundai XG 300s with top-of-the-line sound systems. The cars are the brainchild of taxi driver Toshiyuki Anzai and run from 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. Monday through Saturday. Taxis are a very useful and welt liked means of transportation within the cities of Japan.

Along with the taxi, those who do not wish to ride the train may use busses and trams; also known as trolleys. The trams and trolleys operate on the same principal as the trains meaning you buy a ticket before entering, depending on the amount of stops you plan to travel. Trams and busses run between the hours of 5 a.m. and midnight. They offer a pleasant view of surroundings, are easy to use and get around in, and are therefore popular in many cities, especially in Hiroshima.

Busses serve as a secondary means of public transportation in Japan, complementing the train and subways networks. These work on the same principle as the trolleys and subways do as well; you pay for how many stops you go. You take a ticket on the way in and then pay in the front on your way out. They are very frequent and are easy to use; the only problem is that sometimes they get caught up in city traffic congestion.

The amount of public transportation and the use of taxis have significantly increased over the years. Many believe that the government should stop wasting funding on expressways where the tolls are insanely expensive. Some say that expressways should be built to re-invigorate a declining rural population. But when a trend is in motion it stays in motion for a long time, and with exponential growth in the cities, mass transit and reliable transit such as taxis need to rise to the expectations of everyone. And as the technology keeps getting better, so do the ways one can get around in Japan. A means to get around as one pleases, and get around comfortably is very important in Japanese life; that is because the Japanese are such a busy people and are very mobile.