That's more than the population of Chicago.
The front or the back of trains, will be reserved for...
AAAAH NOOO
They guys on ASK JAPANESE. Today I am gonna give you 10 Facts
that might be quirky, weird, strange or fascinating about trains in Japan.
BUSIEST! Japan has the busiest stations in the world.
Top three are Shinjuku, Shibuya and Ikebukuro
And fascinatingly enough,
In Shinjuku about every day 3 Million people try to go through
and commute through Shinjuku station.
If you count that up that is more than the population of Chicago.
Even though that station is insanely busy, everything works because
everyone is used to it. The staff is used to it, they are trained for it,
and the people who commute through those stations
already know where they are going, what they are going to do.
It's always very interesting for me to see
when I change, especially at Shinjuku,
I sometimes see travelers get lost. They STAND OUT in the crowd
because everyone else knows where they are going.
Everyone just goes "Swoosh, I am gonna go there."
While the travelers are like...
"Which platform do I go to?"
That's when I usually stop and help people out.
But...
Looking at the generally public, everyone knows where they are going
and that's why everything works.
The most CROWDED!
Everyone must have seen...
You guys must have seen...
pictures of Tokyo and the Tokyo trains and how you can get
squished into those trains.
Sometimes it's like you are a little sardine,
you get squished into a tin.
And then you drive for a couple of stops and then you get out of the tin.
That's a feeling that I understand. It still works because people line up
when people try to get onto the train. When it gets really busy you might
have seen pictures of train pushers.
They used to be more of a thing. Sometimes you still see them here
where they help push people into the train, sometimes they help
to push a bag back in.
What I have seen sometimes they will just ask a person to take the next train.
"Like dude, the next train comes in three minutes. Please wait."
You are blocking everyone's way.
That's because the doors will close and if they close on a person
they won't close perfectly, they will open back up.
What I have seen a couple of times, the train doors will
close slowly and people will push in their bags to just make it.
But seriously, I had so many journeys where I like...
My bum is against another lady's bum and I am like
"This is a really weird train journey"
That's one of the things you might have to live with, if you wanna
live here in Tokyo.
If you can't deal with so many people and the crowds,
I recommend you to
not take the rush hour trains. If you just avoid the rush hours
you'll be fine. It won't be as bad.
It's not always that bad. That seems to be the image many people
have abroad but it's not always as bad.
It's just especially in the mornings during rush hours
and in the evenings when everone is going home.
Best time to avoid is go on the train after 9:30 am
that's when things start to calm down a little bit in the mornings.
WOMEN ONLY CARTS!
Now mentioning how crowded these trains can get
you might understand why there are women only carts.
These ones have been established now and they usually
are happening in the mornings.
They are only set for a certain time in the mornings.
The front or the back (depending on the company) will be reserved for women
or kids who are in elementary school or people who need help
people with a wheelchair or who need some certain kind of assistance.
That cart is reserved for them. It's not just
priority seats on one side of the train, the train is a whole
that is women's only in the mornings.
There are certain reasons for that, but before I go into that
If you are worried about getting on a women's only cart and you are a dude
Make sure it's after rush hour, because then everyone can use that cart.
There are a couple of reasons why those carts were established.
The most commonly known abroad is the train groupers.
It's been a real big issue in Japan it's nice to see that people are
trying to change it, trying to make things better and give women who
commute daily to work and students, a saver atmosphere.
One opinion is, that it's kind of sad that something like this had to be established
On the other side it's a move toward protecting women and students
who want to go to work. Especially if it gets very crowded
it makes personally a big difference if you get squished
against a sweaty business man or against a sweaty business lady.
I must say...
If I had to choose, I'd choose the second one.
That's why I take the ladies only train in the mornings.
It's just like a ladies zone. People feel more comfortable.
One of my friends said she prefers the ladies only cart because it is
A - quiet and B - it doesn't smell so bad in summer.
She says she has a very sensitive nose.
So that was her opinion there.
It gives you a save environment especially if you are travelling to work
especially if you are commuting for a long time.
And lots of women and girls take advantage of it.
To get to work or to school safely.
SEATS! Don't expect to sit down on a train in Japan!
I know that sounds weird. I was used to in the UK and Germany to sit
That might not be happening if you live here in Japan.
Generally in the mornings and during rush hour
you cannot sit down unless you are very busy or have a plan.
I might tell you about that one as well.
Generally the seats are lined on one side.
On the side of the doors, there is usually a row of seats.
Instead of them facing forwards and backwards
generally the trains here in Tokyo at least
always have the back against the wall where the doors are.
That's why only a limited amount of people can sit there in the first place.
Seven to six and sometimes eight people can sit on one side.
And the rest has to stand.
There are lots of handrails and usually the announcements will
also say "we might have sudden stops, please hold onto the handrails".
I can really recommend that. The amount of times
I almost fell into other people and got knocked over by other people
who didn't hold onto the hand rails is ridiculous.
The train will suddenly go WHAAA and you are like AAAH NOOOO
But yeah that's one of the things
There are certain ways of making sure that you might get a seat.
For example...
Getting on at a certain station.
Standing in line is very important when you get onto the train.
Hopefully you will be able to snatch a seat.
But don't expect it. I generally drive to work an hour and a half
And I stand for an hour and a half.
That's why I usually wear comfortable shoes.
That's a thing you might have to consider
if you are here in Japan and commuting.
DELAYS
If a train is actually delayed in Japan there is usually a good reason for it.
Unfortunately one of the most common reasons for that
in Japan are train suicides.
When usually workers jump in front of the train.
In that case it will take about two hours for uh... well...
the trains to run the normal speed again.
It's a very sad issue in Japan and especially in May
and June is the times when there are lots of train delays
because many people commit suicide.
I hope that is an issue that in the future will be resolved...
somehow...
Also if your train is delayed for a certain time
you can get a train delay certificate from your train company
That you can then give to your employer as a good reason to why you are
late for work. People are very much on time here in Japan
That's another thing people look out for.
VARIETY!
There is a great variety of different train services.
In your country the metro might be connected and the same thing,
Here in Tokyo we have the Metro but we also have JR and then then lots
of other private train lines.
You might think that you can use the same ticket on the same one
but sometimes you can't!
But recently since we have the PASMO and the Suica card
it's a lot easier to get around because it just takes off
the amount of money that you were travelling on that day.
There are also Local, Semi-express, Express, Rapid, Super Express...
there are so many different types of train on one train line
as well.
And sometimes two different train lines will share the same tracks
for a certain amount of time and then separately go their ways again.
It's insane and it makes it very confusing at times.
PRECISE! If look on the floor on the platforms
you will see exactly where the doors are. You can also see which cart
and which door number you will get into. The trains will stop exactly
where they should. If they don't, they will apologize and then move a bit
so that they are just at the right precise location for opening the doors.
GET AROUND! Many train companies take pride in the stuff they do
so they offer certain value tickets.
They might include meals or different buses in a region
or other things so...
If you get a value ticket
you get something attached to it
and get the best out of it. With those ones best ask at the main stations
And they might be able to help you.
For example I traveled with the "Tuna Ticket" to Cat island the other day.
It was a great value for a low price which included food and attractions
If you are curious about that one I will put the link in the top right of the screen
So you know how to get to Cat island. So that's just one of the things
that train companies here in Japan offer for their customers.
I hope you enjoyed this video. There are lots of facts about Japanese trains.
If you wanna see more about that or have some facts you would like to add,
write that in the comment box, I am looking forward to reading it.
I hope you have a lovely day.
And let me know, if there is anything you would like us to feature
about Japanese trains. Thank you very much for watching!