Begin Japanology~ Railway

[Music] [Music] the crowd of people have gathered on a platform to see off the last train they're here to say goodbye to a station building on the date closes Japan is covered by a network of Railways the Japanese are among the world's top users of trains with unique features to make the ride more enjoyable and carriage designs that focus on comfort and luxury Japan's railways are interesting in many different ways railways change Japanese lifestyles shaping new cities and new cultures in 2013 a project of an unprecedented scale connected the lines of different railway companies and realized a transfer free journey across Tokyo Japanese train fans are very passionate and recently a lot of women have joined their owners on this edition of beginning Japan ology our theme is railways we look at how railways developed in Japan and how much they mean to the Japanese people when you say to pine and railways I'm sure many people have a visual image of commuters being bodily manhandled in fact rush-hour trains this is Shinjuku Station an enormous complex where nine different train lines operated by five different companies or both above and below ground that it's Japan busiest station number J our lines alone there are some 700,000 people who pass through this station every day in Japan everybody rides the train because it just is the most convenient way to get around but the railways offer a lot more than just trains let's take a look Japan is a land of Railways although Japan is relatively small it has 200 or so rail companies operating campus lines all the way from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa in the south Japanese railways carry a combined total of 23 billion passengers each year that's more than any other country in the world in order to transport such a large number of travelers it's vital that trains leave and arrive on time some lines count being even one minute late as a delay and in large cities it's not unusual for trains to run every two minutes during rush hour [Music] with so many people coming and going it's vital to be able to move around the station smoothly and easily automatic ticket barriers play a key role in preventing congestion Japan was the first country to develop an automated system back in 1967 automatic barriers mean the flow of foot traffic doesn't stop at the exits this is a huge help during the busy rush out Japan is also known for its speedy Shinkansen bullet trains which just keep getting faster fifty years ago the fastest bullet train could travel at 210 km/h today some can travel at 300 km/h and over and test runs of the linear kyo maglev train have recorded speeds of 500 kilometers per hour that line is expected to open in 2027 and it will introduce an entirely new dimension of speed other trains have made a name for themselves with luxury rather than speed this sleeper train that cruises around Kyushu is the Seven Stars introduced in 2013 because three billion yen to build expensive wood blinds the interior this grand train has been described as a hotel on Rails the furnishings are also first-class this lamp was custom-made for the train and the artist who made it is a living national treasure on board Sochi chefs from a famous Kyushu restaurant prepare food using the freshest ingredients passengers are served a local Kumamoto wine that's won praise from wine critics around the world the most expensive cabin costs more than 500,000 yen per person for a three night four-day trip despite the high prices reservations are pouring it Japanese rail companies are trying out many unique schemes this is a local service in Wakayama the Keisha Galilee tourists from Japan and abroad have come to meet Tama the stationmaster [Music] tamo was named stationmaster in 2007 and her fame grew quickly in Japan cats are thought to bring good fortune an Tama has certainly helped the fortunes of this local money trains offering unique experiences are also popular this singing train is rented by passengers who want to have a sing-along here is a winter only service in an ordinal region passengers sit under kotatsu heated tables traditionally found in Japanese living rooms the days of a local festival makes an appearance to ward off evil spirits many passengers come specifically for this experience Japanese trains are more than a mode of transport they can also be a lot of fun in Japan you'll quite often see items on the news about the railways sometimes it'll be an old style of train that's being retired other times a brand-new one is making its debut 2013 at a JR station called Minami Odawa a woman fell into the gap between the train and the platform and about 14 passengers and railway workers got together to push on the train to tip it just enough for the woman to be rescued Japanese people are famous for working well in groups in this case the train service was able to be restored with a delay of just at 8 minutes let's take a look at the history of railways of Japan the first railway in Japan opened in 1872 it was built by the government with help from Britain a steam locomotive ran the 29 kilometers stretch between Shimbashi and Yokohama the Train took only an hour to cover what would take a full day on foot not only was it fast he could carry lots of passengers the Japanese fell in love with this fantastic new mode of transport and private companies were soon building their own lines the first private line went into service in 1881 Tomomi era Kura and other former aristocrats led this enterprise the firm had government support and grew steadily other entrepreneurs were inspired by success and more companies sprang up setting off a railway boom some lines were laid down inside cities Japan also introduced horse-drawn trams a British invention with horses drawing carriages along tracks there were even manpower trams people actually push the carriages there were 29 of these trams around Japan Japan's first electrically powered train went into business in 1895 [Music] private train lines were springing up everywhere but one man had an idea that would change the future of the business forever entrepreneur itísö Kobayashi the father of private rail in 1907 there was a plan to build a railway linking three locations in the Kansai region the midde Meenal and Takarazuka the problem was how to make it profitable most of the line would run through undeveloped farmland where there were few potential passengers however Kobayashi had an idea that took advantage of the cheapness in the land many office workers at the time lived in crowded tenements in city centres the rooms were small and unhygienic and smoke from nearby factories swirled around the builders Kobayashi decided to build homes in the clean comfortable areas along the railway and sell them to workers in tenements then they would use the railway to get to work occupying about 330 square meters the house would be half the price of a city home but still three to four times an office workers annual salary so Kobayashi introduced Japan's first mortgages making it easier for ordinary workers to buy homes the railway opened in 1910 and the 200 holes that were offered that year sold out instantly after that Kobayashi built many more new towns along railways working in the city and living in suburbs a very common pattern in Japan was created by the Rohit [Music] in order to attract even more passengers he built zoos and hot springs bars at terminus stations at one hot spring resort he put together a troop of young women who sang and performed plays they became very popular eventually commercially built a theater for the group and developed them into a unique all-female company of singing performance in 1929 he built a department store an extra station creating the world's first terminal department store shopping could begin just a few steps from the Train few people could afford Western food at the time but Kobayashi caused a stir by offering it cheaply in the department store the station was soon bustling [Music] itazura Kobayashi's railway innovation assured in a new era shaping popular culture and entertainment and his influence is still felt today [Music] just found a spelling mistake in this book oops this is a bookshop there's a cafe in the back there's women's hosiery over there behind me here there's a little counter selling household items and stuff it's a little bit unusual about this whole shopping arcade is that it's right above a train platform we're in touch car station in western Tokyo you don't even have to leave the station because the whole thing is right here in the concourse and a couple of floors up in the same building you have some facilities that are quite unusual even in a Japanese station building the dentists for example pharmacy over here and to top it off there's even a daycare center in here I'm going to be talking to a lady who's in charge I mean Matt Samira it's quite unusual to see a daycare center on top of the train station is what you do here at this position yes we take care of the children from 7:00 in the morning to 10:00 at night and we're here in the station so we take walks around the station with the children also the staff at the various shots sometimes take part in our activities we have a lot of fun I see you also have it's quite small but a rather nice garden so I'm sure this must be popular little children yes it is with this garden even though they're inside the station the children can play outside they just love it well it's attached to the station so when I'm dropping my child off on the way to work and it's raining we don't get wet it's convenient [Music] okay now we're going to take a look at a rail line relocation that happened in 2013 one of the biggest in the history of Japan's railways March 2013 five Elway companies in the Tokyo metropolitan area complete the connection of their lines to create a new through service centered on Shibuya one of the biggest stations in Tokyo service is run by two private companies and linked to a subway line to ship it from Shibuya you can go on to Yokohama and stops beyond near the sea as a result passengers can now travel from Saitama to the Yokohama area without changing trains this was the culmination of a huge project announced in 2004 in 2004 the Minato Mirai line opened it runs from the city center in Yokohama along the coast to the motto mati and Chinatown areas at the same time this line was connected with the torque utøya : that links Yokohama was she with then in 2008 a new Tokyo subway line was built the fukutoshin line to private rowers in Saitama will link to this line giving passengers direct access to shibir there are 13 subway lines in Tokyo and the space underground is a labyrinth of water and gas pipes the subway lines run through this tangled web the fukutoshin lion was the newest addition to the Tokyo system it was especially difficult to build new tunnels and shinjuku-sanchome a one key station the reason can be seen in its arched platform close look at the platform doors shows that the platform is lower at both ends rising a little in the center shinjuku-sanchome II was already a station for two underground lines when the fukutoshin line was being built the new station had to be built between the mare analogy and toys Shinjuku lines but if the tunnel have been straight it would have bumped into the Toei Shinjuku line [Music] so a decision was made to bend the new tunnel into a slight arch just 11 centimeter separate the new tunnel from the Toei Shinjuku line tunnel beloit the last step was to link the fukutoshin line with the torque Utah alkaline this meant relocating all the toy alkaline platforms at shibir it was to be the fastest large-scale construction project in the history of Japanese railways one day the platforms are one floor up the next they were five floors underground the workers had just four hours for the final phase of this change on March the 16th 2013 the end of the line for the half century old above-ground platform the last train is waved off by a crowd of railway enthusiasts at 52 minutes after midnight finally an epic construction project swings into action [Applause] there are 1.4 kilometers between Shibuya and Daikanyama the next station a tunnel linking the underground platforms to the above-ground platforms at the next station is built and ready the first task is to remove old rails blocking the exit of the tunnel that Daikanyama 1,200 workers who have been standing by in position swarm over the tracks at one minute past 1:00 a.m. the team begins cutting the above-ground rails a 106 meter section of rail is removed by crane to 11:00 a.m. an hour into the work the underground rails appear the higher rails must be benched then linked to the loins [Music] a 76 meter stretch of track is pulled down by hydraulic jacks 28 jacks are used to pull down the anonymously heavy tracks by 1.7 meters the track ends or security bolts and the work is complete for 46 a.m. just three hours and 56 minutes after the last train that job is done a mere 18 minutes later the first train of the morning leaves the new underground Shibuya station platform and makes its way south it passes safely to the tunnel and arrives at Daikanyama station two minutes later the direct line is finally open for business extraordinary technology is helping to build new railway networks in Japan [Music] I wonder if you can tell where I am this is a bar in Shibuya with a special attraction for train lovers okay can we get started please yes of course the lights are kind of nice thank you yes we put lights in the trains that run in this part just looking at these buildings over here is this meant to be actually shibuya actually yes what led you to open a bar like this in the first place well I myself like trains and with living conditions what they are in Tokyo it's tough to run a model train set up in your home I thought I'd create a space where people with homes like that could gather and enjoy themselves actually so that one reminds me of when I first came to Japan that was there but I don't know if you like this one here I've never seen that one before what is this fun that's an express train that goes to Kansai Airport what kind of clientele have you get lots of businessmen but recently the number of women has increased we also get a lot of foreign customers all of this is reminding me of when I was about 12 years old and did a tiny bit of Trainspotting before I got bored with it I can remember all of the Train spoilers that I ever saw any way with men or boys I should say and when the owner he has said that there were women who come to this bar I was a little bit surprised let's take a look now at some more female train enthusiasts a railway museum in the city of Saitama it displays old rail carriages that visitors can actually enter it's popular with train fans drawing 800,000 visitors a year nearly half of those visitors are women one railway company holds special viewing events for female train fans even though the fee is a steep eight thousand yen these fifty person tours are very popular attracting women of all ages many women now travel by trains simply to enjoy the railways this is Kirikou Ikeda who lives in Tokyo today she left her husband at home and she's enjoying a tour of local lines in the tour Hawker region in Northeast Japan she quickly makes friends with other women traveling alone and they start talking about the railways they remember from their youth you stuck your head out and shouted for a lunchbox and the man would come running along the platform local lions often use carriages that formerly operated in bigger cities Ikeda comes across one such specimen that really surprises her it's a carriage that was running near her Tokyo home just after she got married Oh a Tokyo train that takes me back in Nana to Sakuragi chil Ikeda married in 1963 her two children are grown up and her husband is retired but until recently she was busy caring for elderly parents now she finally has some time to enjoy herself she says that looking at the train carriages and holding on to the straps reminds her of family shopping trips the biggest thing for me is that it takes me back to the old days it's so satisfying and rewarding I can go back to the city feeling much more relaxed and happy here's a young woman taking photos on the station platform the steam locomotive is great too but next to it there's a guard fan Wow assume he has here is riding every train in the land and taking pictures as she goes someday she takes up to 400 photos she shoots the carriages in my new detail she even photographs the carriage numbers she's a true train geek Patea first became a fan when she was 15 when an express train in her hometown of Fukui drew her attention it was love at first sight at university she joined a railway club that was almost 80 years old despite being the only woman she went on to become the club president that's one measure of her enthusiasm she has a special person for planning imaginary trips using a precious set of time tables she looks at the timetables and then arranges the schedule she says that by planning the trip it feels almost as if she actually went on it today Hatcher has come to Hokkaido on holiday she deliberately chose a slow trade and gets off on route so that she can watch other trains come and go she imagines the trains destinations and falls under their spell all over again if you followed that track you'd reach hacker data if you split off and you go under the sea to Almaty if you kept going you'd end up all the way south in Kyushu the Train in front of me will beam some time I've never heard of in a few hours that's amazing the romantic appeal of train tracks extending beyond the horizon in the same way Hachi as passion for the railways knows no bounds as we've seen all kinds of people have all kinds of different ways of enjoying the railways and this bar is one example of that too they even serve their own original railway themed cocktails like this one which is called the Twilight Express it's named after this train here which is painted a nice deep green color it runs northward along the Sea of Japan and you see the Setting Sun as you're in the Train and this cocktail is the same green it's based on green tea and has a little cherry in the bottom to signify the Setting Sun romantic isn't it so I shall sit here and sip on this for a little while I'll see you again next time looking at you kid [Music] next time our theme is pianos Japan produces 40% of the world pianos from electric models to concert grands Japan's pianos embody cutting-edge technology to discern them global admiration musicians from around the world - awards for the victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake NHK world brings you a three-part special series of commemorative concerts beginning March 16th with an exceptional performance by the Strasburg Philharmonic Orchestra featuring violinist Sayaka Shoji and leap tichel builders hospira don't miss part one of music for tomorrow a concert to remember [Music] nhk well these your gateway to Japan and the rest of Asia get different perspectives on what's making news in this dynamic region from the latest of business to the latest in technology explore culture history and beauty of this corner of the world go to more than 4 billion people objective and accurate curious and dari NHK world get close to the world with Japan Newsline brings you the latest from Japan Asia and the world covering critical choices and crucial developments for the perspective from this part of the globe bankers backed by years of experience tell you what's happening now and what's likely next news live on the hour every hour from NHK world [Applause] [Music] [Music]

Channel: JapanLover

Views: 92,999

Keywords: Japanese Studies

Id: jcevJkwZjhY

Length: 29min 48sec (1788 seconds)

Published: Wed Apr 16 2014