John Daub: Welcome to Tokyo's JR Ueno Station.
About 180,000 people make their way around this station daily.
It is a stop for the Tohoku Shinkansen and trains moving to northern Japan and around the city.
This is also a place with a lot of services and public spaces
and they need to be kept clean around the clock.
And this is the perfect place to see how one of the
world's biggest cities also stays one of the cleanest.
[Intro music]
Irraishaimase! (Welcome!)
Peter von Gomm: ONLY in Japan
Ueno station is one of Tokyo's main travel hubs.
The 14th largest station in the JR East network
with 22 platforms on three levels including the Shinkansen underground.
Four station entrances: Central, Shinobazu, Park, and Iriya.
The first train is 4:33 am: the Keihin-Tohoku line
and the last train is 12:46 am: Yamanote Line.
There are loads of shops inside the station too.
Restaurants, bookstores, cafes, gachapon,
flower shops, gift shops, convenience stores.
It's like a little city inside a city.
And when it comes to cleaning it,
it takes a team of dedicated professionals to get the job done.
Morning at the office.
There are many shifts throughout the day.
Station is maintained around the clock.
This is the group shift meeting at 9am.
Staff: Good morning!
John: Managers give a rundown of daily tasks, news, reminders.
The JR East Environment Access Company,
or JEA, has been in service since 1963.
They're responsible for cleaning; environmental improvement;
facility management; security and safety;
collection, transportation, recycling of waste
for facilities such as train stations, trains, station buildings, hotels,
apartments, and hospitals;
management of coin operated lockers and
vending machines in stations.
It's a lot.
The staff takes notes.
Most of them have been on the job for years.
Part of a family-like team getting things done around the station.
In the back is one of JEA's youngest members, Hirasawa-san.
We'll be following him and some of his duties today.
The final briefing finishes and the team prepares for its daily missions.
[Dramatic music]
A hardcore unit of professionals prepare
to battle through the day in the quest
for cleanliness, safety, and
help passengers get through around safely.
No mess left behind.
First mission: clean and prep trains for the trip out of Ueno.
[Platform chimes]
The team arrives a couple of minutes
before the train and gets in place by
assigned cars including first class,
known as the Green Car.
[Platform announcements in Japanese]
After passengers alight Hirasawa-san takes
any garbage they may have then goes in for his duty.
This particular train has row seats
which rotate around to the direction of departure.
Hirasawa-san is also scouting out any problem areas.
The rows are flipped around.
The window ledge is wiped.
Next the head rest coverings are replaced.
He attaches them.
He checks the seat trays for trash or messes.
He checks over the car one more time before moving on.
Time is limited to as little as a few
minutes depending on the schedule.
The team comes together to confirm the train
and all compartments have been swept
before moving on to the next task.
Hirasawa-san next maintains the vending machines.
His particular duty is to care for the recycling.
Each vending machine in the station has
a recycling bin next to it.
No matter if it's full or not the contents
are collected, linings refreshed.
There are a lot of vending machines on the platforms in Ueno.
Any spills are carefully wiped up to
prevent any passengers from slipping.
When the recycling for this shift is all
collected, it's taken to a cart for
station removal.
Now Hirosawa-san has rotated from
cleaning to maintenance and security.
He dons reflective safety gear and helmet
with flags for specific purpose.
All equipment needed is confirmed off the checklist.
When it comes to safety, there can be no errors.
As the train comes in, he's now tasked
with replacing the water on the train first.
Since he is physically on the tracks,
proper gear is required as well as a lookout.
Despite knowing the train schedule,
there is no margin for error.
Hirosawa-san stands guard as his partner focuses on
the job completely without needing to
take his eyes off the task at hand.
The actions are all practiced to avoid
mistakes and they need to stay on schedule.
When complete they radio HQ to
let them know they're off the tracks.
When the okay is given they can move on.
HQ knows exactly where everyone is...
Confirmed.
Today they're cleaning special platform 13 1/2.
This is meant for the luxury Shikishima liner to Tohoku.
[Platform announcement]
Since the cleaning team is sometimes on
the outside of the hand railing near the track,
guards are required.
They know the schedule.
No train is coming and it may seem a little unusual to us,
but to ensure a zero percent chance of trouble
the staff can clean without any worry focusing on their jobs.
It's not an exciting job.
There's obviously nothing coming.
But once again, this is how far they go to ensure
safety on the job inside the station.
A mark of how seriously they take their job
Let me know if you think this is a
little extreme in the comments below.
Because staff is still cleaning on the
outside of the railing they'll be here on guard.
Work on platform 13 1/2 is complete.
Hirasawa-san can return to home base after
checking the tracks for debris.
When complete they radio in again to let
them know the task is complete and
they're off the tracks.
Mission complete.
The busy schedule does allow a little time to smile.
I sat down with Hirasawa-san to
understand how he approaches his job.
Hirasawa: The work can't be done alone
so all the staff works together to finish the day safely
so that there are no accidents.
After all, if just one accident occurs,
it causes more trouble
so be careful not to cause any accidents.
It feels good to work in a beautiful space like this
because I like to keep this space beautiful
so it feels good to share that with passengers here.
John: Every day the job of cleaning and
maintaining JR Ueno station continues.
The station spotless.
The hard work going virtually unnoticed but that is a mark
of how good they are at it.
There is a lot of space to cover and
after decades of working in the station,
the team has perfected their steps for
safety and efficiency.
[Rock music]
Toilet paper for the station sometimes
has a long way to go to get to its final
destination.
Using this cart, our mission is to take
it to the second floor toilet storage
rooms in the shopping area.
As he walks along he calls out to let
any passengers know the carts are
crossing the area.
A lot of people these days walk with
smartphones and an audio warning is
especially helpful to avoid any accidents.
We have arrived.
The first destination.
Rolls of toilet paper are put into the
storage room so there is plenty for
other staff to refill the stalls
throughout the day.
Be assured you can spare more than a square at Ueno station.
Locked behind closed doors.
The storage and janitor closets are spotless.
There are lots of closets to fill with toilet paper.
The cardboard is taken back for recycling.
Mission complete.
VO: The Amazing Vomit Vacuum
John: This machine was made special for JEA to
clean the platform vomit.
The days of sawdust and careful scooping are over.
We'll show some simulation vomit to show
the power of the suck side.
First the vomit is wetted down.
After a minute or so it's sucked up with
the water to the tank on the unit.
It does a very thorough job leaving the
area looking cleaner than it did before
the unfortunate hurling happened.
The mess can be thrown away without any contact.
Replace the bag and go to the next spot.
The vomit vacuum is a must for Friday nights.
It's after 1am and the station is closed
to the public but JEA is working around the clock.
After the last train when the station closes,
JEA is deep cleaning the public spaces.
Some staff members aren't exactly human though.
This robot cleans the floors every night.
There are newer robots at some of the other stations.
Technology increasingly plays a part in keeping urban public
areas clean, safe, and secure.
It's around 2 a.m and it's time to deep
clean the station's public toilets.
There are several toilets in and around the
station under JEA's management.
Hirasawa-san will show us how it's done.
Japanese public toilets everywhere are
some of the cleanest in the world.
Not just from the cleaning done by the staff
but by responsible people who try to
leave areas cleaner than when they found it.
There's some background on this so
I went in to meet with the head of JEA.
Horino: In Japan, we grow up believing there is a toilet god.
So when we're young, we think
if we clean the toilet, we will become happy.
So there's a culture behind this.
Cleaning requires craftsmanship like an art
it's not just a job.
It really is more than just work.
So I believe each person works with that feeling.
John: Cleanliness is a part of Japanese
culture and something like cleaning
a toilet can be an art.
This will illustrate just how detailed
staff in Japan clean those public toilets
Hirasawa-san used a sponge for the inside.
Rather than using a brush he's doing it
by hand like this.
It ensures the toilet is as clean as it
was when it was new.
For the washlet nozzle, a small brush is
used for detailed cleaning.
For the parts of the toilet the public
will touch a separate towel is used with
appropriate cleaner.
This may be how every toilet should be
cleaned but rarely is.
More like the service at a luxury hotel.
There are also many multi-purpose
toilets that need cleaning too.
JEA is one of many teams in Tokyo keeping a
super busy city super clean.
Anyone who's ever walked around here
knows it's one of the cleanest in the world.
[Music]
Back at the office there is a "Happy Point"
board where good work is praised.
A manager saw a staff member mopping the
floor at a busy toilet entrance.
Careful not to block passengers.
Thank you for the continued hard work.
The teams here are always looking to
stay sharp. Get better.
You can see on this detailed schedule
train arrivals and departures and the
team needs to have everything timed to
the minute.
At HQ, every staff member checks in.
The time documented.
It's more than just cleaning.
Every task is a challenge they've prepared and
practiced for like a sheet of music.
Everyone has to hit each beat.
Hirasawa: The tools we use are different
the way to use each tool is different
every cleaning task is different
so I think it's really interesting
to learn every part of this job.
It's great to share this with new staff too.
John: It's not just Tokyo.
There are men and women all around the world
that are working hard to make our cities run
smoothly clean and safe.
If you see them doing a good job let them know.
Smile and say thank you.
After working with this crew for a couple of days,
I know it's really appreciated.
If you liked it, watch another one of the stories.
Consider subscribing and joining me on another
adventure to the corners of this amazing country.
I think that's my train!
Mata ne! (See you again!)