Brent Toderian
REMARKABLE public transit system — Tokyo's transit map with 882 stations and 16 billion riders each year, which is 1.5X the ridership of every public transit system in the United States combined. And these were the numbers a few years ago (HT @straphanger) so it’s probably higher now.

#Tokyo #Japan #Urbanism #cities #density #PublicTransit #PublicTransport #trains #rail
Dec 14, 2022 at 2:40amWeb
Show threadPeter ButlerDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger Beautiful. So jealous.
Show threadDoug A 🖖🇨🇦✅Dec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger The Tokyo metro is not as crowded as you would think from some of the videos of the ‘pushers’, and you can get everywhere easily and wow do they adhere to the published schedule. Also very easy even if you are not Japanese fluent.
Show threadDaigoro Toyama Dec 14, 2022
@DAshford @BrentToderian @straphanger True about the crowdedness. Some train lines are generally busier than others, and even those busiest lines tend to be manageable off peak. I lived in Tokyo for 4 years in the 90s. I only saw the pushers at work a few times.
Show threadIan Hecht 🇨🇦Dec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger The one time I visited Tokyo, I was super-impressed by their metro. I've had the opportunity to ride in Paris, London and Toronto, and Tokyo was by far the smoothest experience. You could enter your destination into a terminal at any station and it would print out a route to follow, including line changes and everything!
Show threadPhillip KyriakakisDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger with all the great ramen i heard about, i would ride the rails all day 
Show threadSteven ZekowskiDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger We visited in 2016. Loved riding the trains. Got everywhere we wanted to go. Never got lost (used mobile app). Saw autos but never saw a traffic jam… in a city of 23 million! Easy too. Bought an IC card and metro pass if I recall.
Show threadApril Moreno Health IT LabDec 14, 2022
@steve_zeke @BrentToderian @straphanger I worked there 6 years and yes, rush hour is seriously packed in Tokyo trains.
Show threadSteven ZekowskiDec 14, 2022
@aprilmorenolab @BrentToderian @straphanger Good point. As tourists we had luxury of not needing to travel at rush hour.
Show threadBohoroloDec 14, 2022
@straphanger @BrentToderian I’m on it right now! I not only don’t need to drive here, but I’ve only taken about three taxis in as many years and I’ve been all over the city. Love it!
Show threadCharlotte PrattDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger surely noteworthy. It never stops to surprise me how underdeveloped the public transportation system is in the US.
Show threadMicheleDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger I live in Nagoya and haven’t been to Tokyo in a year, but Covid had reduced the numbers a little bit
Show threadDrooling Fan GirlDec 14, 2022

@BrentToderian @straphanger That’s the Tokyo area map for the JR line. It includes more than Tokyo. If you go to this link, it’s the map on the left. The map on the right is the Tokyo city map.

https://www.jrailpass.com/maps#tokyo-rail-and-metro-maps

Japan Rail Pass Map & Metro Maps

Get the Japan railways map, Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto metro and local maps, and find the shinkansen and train lines you can take with the Japan Rail Pass.

Japan Rail Pass - JRailPass.com
Show thread[zaphod@::1]#Dec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger I recently watched a YouTube about the guy who invented this style of map for and London Underground and then everyone copied it.
The design was even rejected at first.
He kept doing that map for free and didn't get paid.
Show threadPeter BrownDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger impeccably run and punctual.
Show threadPeter BrownDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger they also don’t allow parking on the street, so there’s no point in taking your car into town unless you’ve got somewhere to park it.
Show threadWalter K. LewDec 14, 2022
@BrentToderian @straphanger The Tokyo system is a mixed experience: inane redundancies & loops, great breadth. Not uncommon to transfer by going back above ground on foot for long trudges thru dense mall & sidewalk crowds, hunting for v poor signage (I read Jpnese). Shuts down 'Round Midnight. Granted the commuters r courteous, fares OK, Lost&Found superb, tckt machines fairly informative. Seoul-tranes much better but also down @midnight. NYC buses/Berlin rail best deep night transit I've seen.
Show threadGen X-WingDec 15, 2022

@BrentToderian @straphanger @smallsco Isn’t that just the JR East? I believe there’s more than one.

And boy is it massive. And very cool to visit.

Show threadBen Keith 🚲Dec 15, 2022
@BrentToderian
If you haven't seen the latest RM Transit video on the #Yamanote Line in #Tokyo, it's worth a watch, since it talks about how they achieve that ridership: https://youtube.com/watch?v=SvqldXKcRus
@straphanger #urbanism #trains
The World’s Most Important Rail Line | Tokyo Yamanote Line

YouTube
Show threadSolarbird Dec 15, 2022

I've ridden the Yamanote line, it is _fucking amazing_ and I want it here so bad.

(Around the lake. It should be a big loop around Lake Washington.)