Tokyo Metro: description, scheme, station and reviews

Metro in Tokyo began to work in 1927, after the Japanese businessman Hayakawa Noritsugu came from Europe, inspired by the local subway. In a short period of time, he collected the right amount of money and laid the first subway line in all of Asia. Today, the Tokyo Metro carries the largest number of passengers annually. Here there are 290 stations and 304.5 kilometers of rails. Most recently, the metro in Tokyo was inferior to the Moscow subway by the flow of passengers.

Today there are several private railway lines, as well as Japan Railways. Many owners of personal transport prefer to use the public. The Metro in Tokyo is very comfortable, safe and clean. Almost every company pays employees travel from home to work.

Scary dimensions

There are many rumors that the number of Tokyo Metro stations is so large that it is very easy to get lost in the subway. Such an impression can be created if one simply looks at the whole line diagram.

main feature

In 1920, the construction of a subway began in Tokyo. Today, underground transport runs on 13 lines. The main feature of the Tokyo Metro is the lack of a contact rail. In fact, such trains are ordinary trains. Their movement, they begin and end at a great distance from the city center. Approaching the main part of the infrastructure, the trains enter the tunnels and pass under the metropolis.

The Tokyo Metro. Instructions for use

Each line on the charts, as well as the compositions that follow them, are marked with a separate color. Within the circle, each station is determined by a letter, and also by a number indicating the remaining distance. The duration of some distances between the lines exceeds 800 meters. Due to the large number of pointers and numerous free schemes, it is quite easy to navigate the metro.

It is possible to get lost during an attempt to find the desired exit from the station, which in some places there are about a dozen. All of them are numbered and often built into buildings, so it's quite possible to go to the supermarket right away from the metro. Transitions, crowded with shopping kiosks, snack bars and shops, can stretch for hundreds of meters.

Trading trays can be found even on platforms. Tokyo Metro, in fact, is a whole underground city, where you can not go. The Japanese managed to successfully integrate a variety of transport systems into a single network. In addition to the usual entrances, there are also lifts for the disabled.

Distinctive features

Some platforms in the stations are bent. In the tunnels, lighting is provided. In comparison with the Soviet underground "palaces", the monotonous tiled walls of the Tokyo subway are not impressive at all. Most of the station is shallow.

In the transitions there are provided free toilets, and on the platforms there are drinking fountains. Each car is equipped with fans or air conditioners. The number of cars in each train reaches a dozen. The windows provide curtains to protect against heat during movement on the surface. The stations are announced in Japanese and English.

Safety of passengers

Dozens of video cameras are located in the transitions and at each station. With the help of video surveillance, drivers can control the landing process. Since there are many Japanese willing to jump on the rails under the train, there are high and low barriers in case of a fall.

Protective hermetic locks are missing in the Tokyo metro crossings. The scheme of the Tokyo Metro provides only thin roller shutters. There are no doors at any station. The entrances to the metro are located under the canopies of buildings.

Metropolitan mixed with commuter trains

The Tokyo Metro is a twist of 12 lines with local commuter railroad tracks. In aggregate, we have a list of more than 70 directions and several hundred stations with a daily flow of passengers up to 20 million. In addition, Tokyo electric trains sometimes move through the subway tunnels.

Interesting Facts

The first branch was 2.2 km long. Now only one line is public. All the rest are the property of private firms. Japan was the first Asian power to build a subway. Since 2005, on each line there are wagons for women. The Office made this decision after receiving a large number of complaints from the girls on sexual harassment. Tokyo Metro is equipped with wireless Internet.

The prices vary depending on the distance between the stations. The ticket price is indicated near the names on the chart. From five in the morning until one in the morning the subway works in Tokyo. The metropolitan is divided between two companies. Each has its own orders, and this circumstance sometimes confuses passengers. Large stations in Japan are rare. In the interior of some of them, white predominates, so that the subway does not seem so tight.

Toei Features

Our compatriots, who happened to visit the Land of the Rising Sun and use the underground transport, in their reviews warned that one must be very careful with the acquisition of tickets for the metro in Tokyo. Buying the Economy Pass for one day, in addition to Metro passengers can also use the buses of this company. Ticket of the company "Toei" can not be used on the Tokyo Metro lines. You need to bear this in mind. The Toei metro subway will also not be valid for the JR Yamanote line, the local ring line for trains.

Helpful advice

Tourists from Russia after visiting the Japanese capital in their reviews recommend for 1,000 yen to buy a one-day travel card and do not fool yourself with the need to take into account the proper branch of the subway to a particular company. In addition, they say that there are several possible options. Everyone can choose the most convenient for himself.

You can use the branches of one carrier company so as not to spend extra money if there is no need to change the owner of the lines. It is better to memorize several routes and to overcome the path with their help.

Japanese peak hour

The Tokyo Metro is usually crowded from seven to six-thirty in the morning and from six to ten in the evening. According to the reviews of tourists from Russia, travelers at this time are better off here at all, especially in the central part of the city. At night on Friday, a subway in Tokyo is also undesirable to use. This especially applies to such stations as Shinjuku and Shibuya. They will be filled as the departure time of the last commuter train approaches. Most of the cars at this time are filled with crowds of drunken workers who are going home from corporate parties.

Conclusion

The number of stations in Tokyo subway has more than a thousand names. The scheme looks very confusing, and it seems that it is very easy to get lost here. Thanks to the existing system of marking it is very easy to navigate. In addition to subway trains, the diagram shows lines along which suburban electric trains pass. For the safety of passengers, each station of the Tokyo subway is equipped with fences and a number of CCTV cameras.

In the cars there are video screens, which indicate the current station and the distance to the next stop. Thanks to air conditioning, Tokyo Metro can not be called a suffocating place, despite the huge flow of passengers. Long enough transitions and the number of numerous shops and places for recreation make the subway in this city a special place, where you can not even go out.