Transportation in Greater Tokyo
From JNSwiki
The transport network in Greater Tokyo includes public and private rail and highway networks; airports for international, domestic, and general aviation; buses; motorcycle delivery services, walking, bicycling, and commercial shipping. While the nexus is in the central part of Tokyo, every part of the Greater Tokyo Area has rail or road transport services. The sea and air transport is available from limited number of ports for general public.
Public transport within Greater Tokyo is dominated by the world's most extensive urban rail network [1] of clean and efficient surface trains and subways run by a variety of operators, with feeder buses and monorails playing a secondary role. Walking and bicycling are much more common than in many cities around the globe. Private automobiles and motorcycles play a secondary role in urban transport.
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Railway and subway
Rail is the primary mode of transport in Tokyo. Tokyo has the most extensive urban railway network in the world, including surface lines.[1] There are 30 operators, 102 passenger train lines serving Tokyo, and 19 more serving Greater Tokyo but not Tokyo proper, for a total of 121 serving the metropolitan area, not including some 12 cable cars. Despite this vastness, the network is still being expanded. (See this map of Greater Tokyo's rail network.) Each of the region's rail companies makes their own maps, with key transfer points highlighted. Trains in Japan are often extremely crowded at peak travel times, with people being pushed into trains by "pushers" or oshiya. Most lines in Tokyo are privately owned and operated, with the exception of Toei subway lines (run directly by the Tokyo Metropolitan government). Rail and subway lines are highly integrated and dense; commuter trains from the suburbs continue directly into the subway network on many lines, often emerging on the other side of the city to serve another company's surface commuter line. It is estimated some 20 million people use rail as their primary means of transport (not trips) in the metropolitan area daily. Shinjuku Station is the busiest train station in the world by passenger throughput. [2] In comparison, Germany has 10 million daily train riders, the highest usage of any country in Europe.[3]
Passengers carried in Greater Tokyo stations daily (2007)
- Shinjuku Station 3.64 million (Registered with Guinness World Records)[4]
- Ikebukuro Station 2.71 million[5]
- Shibuya Station 2.18 million[6]
- Yokohama Station 2.09 million[7]
- Tokyo Station 1.12 million[8]
- Shinagawa Station 0.91 million[9]
- Takadanobaba Station 0.90 million [10]
- Shimbashi Station 0.85 million[11]
JR
In addition to operating some long-haul Shinkansen ("bullet train" lines, except Tōkaidō Shinkansen operated by JR Central), JR East operates Tokyo's largest railway network, including the Yamanote Line that encircles the center of Tokyo, and commuter lines radiating from the city to its suburbs. These include the Keihin-Tōhoku Line between Saitama and Yokohama, the Chūō Line to western Tokyo, and the Sōbu Line to Chiba. The Keiyō serves nearby parts of Chiba. The Yokohama, Tōkaidō, and Yokosuka Lines serve the southwestern parts of the area.
Many additional lines form a network outside the center of the city. Among these are the Hachikō, Itsukaichi, Jōban, Jōetsu, Kawagoe, Musashino, Ōme, Negishi, Nambu, Sagami, Takasaki, and Tsurumi Lines. In total, JR alone operates 23 lines within the Greater Tokyo area.
JR East is also the majority stockholder in the Tokyo Monorail, one of the world's most commercially successful monorail lines.
Other carriers operating in Tokyo
Regional railways carry commuters into the center of Tokyo. These include several private railway networks. Keikyu directly operates five lines, Keio six, Keisei seven, Odakyu three, Seibu 13, Tobu 12, Tokyu eight, and the last five one each for a total of 55 non-JR lines serving Tokyo. These same operators indirectly operate (through subsidiaries, outsourcing etc) another 24 commuter lines outside of Tokyo, but in the metropolitan area, as well as a few tourism oriented aerial lifts and funiculars.
- Keihin Electric Express Railway (Keikyū)—Operates out of Shinagawa Station to Kanagawa and Haneda Airport.
- Keio Electric Railway—Operates out of Shinjuku Station and Shibuya Station to western Tokyo.
- Keisei Electric Railway—Operates out of Ueno Station to Chiba (including Narita International Airport).
- Odakyu Electric Railway—Operates out of Shinjuku Station to Kanagawa, most notably Odawara and Hakone.
- Seibu Railway—Operates out of Seibu Shinjuku Station and Ikebukuro Station to western Tokyo.
- Tobu Railway—Operates out of Ikebukuro Station and Asakusa Station to Saitama, Gunma, and Tochigi.
- Tokyo Kyuko Electric Railway (Tōkyū)—Operates out of Shibuya Station and Meguro Station to southern Tokyo and Kanagawa, most notably Yokohama.
- Metropolitan Intercity Railway Company (Tsukuba Express or TX)—Links Akihabara Station with Tsukuba.
Some private and public carriers operate within the boundaries of Tokyo.
- Nippori-Toneri Liner—People mover in north-east Tokyo.
- Tama Toshi Monorail—Runs north/south through Tachikawa in western Tokyo.
- Yurikamome—People mover in Tokyo waterfront.
Subways in Tokyo
Two organizations operate the Tokyo subway network. One has the name "Tokyo Metro" and the other is a part of the government of Tokyo. Tokyo Metro operates nine lines, Toei operates four for a total of 15 lines.
- Tokyo Metro (formerly Eidan)—Operates Japan's largest subway network.
- Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation—Operates the Toei Subway lines.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation also operates the following non-subways:
- Tokyo Waterfront Area Rapid Transit (Rinkai Line)—Operates below surface along the Tokyo waterfront.
- Toden Arakawa Line—Once a common sight before subways and buses came to fore, the streetcar network has shrunk to only this one route between Waseda and Minowabashi.
- Ueno Zoo Monorail—Short monorail in Ueno Zoo.
Railways and Subways outside of Tokyo but in Greater Tokyo
The Sagami Railway (Sōtetsu) operates three lines, Yokohama Municipal Subway operates two lines, while all the rest operate one line each, for a total of 19 lines.
- Chiba Urban Monorail—in the city of Chiba.
- Disney Resort Line—Monorail linking Maihama Station and Tokyo Disney Resort.
- Enoshima Electric Railway (Enoden)—Scenic streetcar operating between Kamakura and Fujisawa, in southern Kanagawa.
- Hokuso Railway—Northeast Chiba Prefecture.
- Sagami Railway (Sōtetsu)—Kanagawa.
- Saitama New Urban Transit (New Shuttle)—People mover in Saitama , Ageo and Ina.
- Saitama Railway (SR)—Northern Tokyo, Saitama.
- Seaside Line—People mover in southern Yokohama.
- Shibayama Railway—Eastern Narita.
- Shin-Keisei Electric Railway—Northwest Chiba.
- Shonan Monorail—Kamakura, south Kanagawa.
- Sobu Nagareyama Electric Railway—Nagareyama, north Chiba.
- Toyo Rapid Railway—Funabashi and Yachiyo, central Chiba.
- Yamaman Yukarigaoka Line—People mover in Sakura, western Chiba.
- Yokohama Minatomirai Railway (Minatomirai Line and Kodomo-no-Kuni Line)—Yokohama.
- Yokohama Municipal Subway—Two lines (three by the official count) serve Yokohama.
Ridership
Below is the average daily riderships of each major operator, as of 2005 fiscal year. The figures are those of directly operated lines, without subsidiary or related company lines. The actual total figure is higher than shown here as smaller operators are not listed. The sum may not reflect total riders accurately as riders may use both multiple lines daily.
| Operator | Average daily ridership |
|---|---|
| East Japan Railway Company | 14,526,027 [12] |
| Tokyo Metro | 5,760,000 [13] |
| Tobu Railway | 2,730,000[13] |
| Tokyo Kyuko Electric Railway | 2,730,000 [13] |
| Toei Subway | 2,086,083[14] |
| Odakyu Electric Railway | 1,850,000 [13] |
| Seibu Railway | 1,660,000 [13] |
| Keio Electric Railway | 1,660,000 [13] |
| Keihin Electric Express Railway | 1,170,000 [13] |
| Keisei Electric Railway | 680,000 [13] |
| Sagami Railway | 620,000 [13] |
| Total | 36,823,673 [12] |
Buses
Public buses in Greater Tokyo usually serve a secondary role, feeding bus passengers to/from train stations. Exceptions are long distance bus services, buses in areas poorly served by rail (not many exist), and airport bus services for people with luggage. Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation operates Toei Buses mainly within the 23 special wards while private bus companies (mostly the subsidiaries of the large train operators listed above) operate other bus routes, as do other city governments, such as Kawasaki City Bus, Yokohama City Bus, etc. The Toei Buses have a fixed fare of 200 yen[15] per ride, while most other companies charge according to distance. Some train operators offer combined bus/train tickets; special fares apply for children and seniors. Some routes feature non-step buses with a kneeling function to assist mobility-impaired users. [16]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 There are 0.61 commuter rail stations in the Tokyo area per square mile (one for each 1.6 square miles) of developed land area, combined with the high density connecting bus networks, Commuter rail ridership very dense, at 6 million per line mile annually, by the highest among automotive urban areas. Urban Transport Factbook, Tokyo-Yokohama Suburban Rail Summary
- ↑ According to the Shinjuku Station article, the station was used by an average of 3.64 million people per day in 2007. See the article for the exact sources. It is registered with Guinness World Records.
- ↑ BBC NEWS | Business | German train strike brings chaos
- ↑ *JR EAST 1,571,602 (785,801×2) [1]
- ↑ *JR EAST 1,179,674 [8]
- ↑ *JR EAST 891,460 [12]
- ↑ *JR EAST 806,788 [18]
- ↑ *JR EAST 792,304[24]
- ↑ *JR EAST 648,506 [27]
- JR Central 21,872 2007
- Keikyū Main Line 242,804 [28]
- ↑ *JR EAST 424,572 [29]
- ↑ *JR EAST 499,214 [32]
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 From Survey of the regional flowages of freights and passengers, MLIT official website. According to the chart 2-5-1, page 104, JR transported 5,224,806 thousand passengers within Greater Tokyo Area, in 2005 (Heisei 17) fiscal year. According to the chart 2-5-2, page 105, private railways transported 8,215,835 thousands, so railways in total transported 13,440,641thousands.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6 13.7 13.8 [35]
- ↑ Business Outline from Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation official website.
- ↑ Toei Transportation Information: Operations
- ↑ Toei Bus official website: 50% of buses are now non-step buses.
External links
- JR East official website, showing the map of the Suica/PASMO accepting area, which roughly corresponds with Greater Tokyo Area (Japanese)
- Greater Tōkyō Railway Network, unofficial railway map of Greater Tokyo (Template:ISO 639 name en)
- Tokyo Railway Map, bilingual railway map of central Tokyo (Japanese) (Template:ISO 639 name en)
- Picturetokyo.com Transportation Guide, in-depth guide to transportation in Tokyo (Template:ISO 639 name en)
- Jorudan Train Route Finder and Timetable (Template:ISO 639 name en)
- Hyperdia Train Route Finder and Timetable (Template:ISO 639 name en)
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