Turtle station

There are several railway stations in Japan with a weird building. One of them is Kamenoko station in Misaki Town, Okayama Prefecture. 亀甲 simply means turtle shell in Japanese, and there is a rock near the station which looks like a turtle shell. This station opened in 1898 on Chugoku Railway Main Line, and it was nationalised in 1944 in accordance with Land Transport Control Ordinance. JR West succeeded the line in 1987 following the privatisation of Japanese National Railways.

The building before repainting (2 Apr 2010)

In 1995, the current station building was built. As its name suggests, it looks exactly like a turtle, and there are clocks on the eyes. The clocks are lit up at night, which surely makes an infant crying. The then-mayor loved turtles, and it seems that the town assembly envisaged that this ambitious building would attract some tourists and promote the town itself, but it is not certain whether it was worth doing so.

The building after repainting (27 Mar 2023)

The turtle's head was painted simply at first, but it was repainted yellow with colourful circles in 2012. A town hall staff indicates that children would like the new head, but I must say that it looks like a face of a sick man. There is a rainbow-pattern on the chin, though it must have no connection with the pride flag.

Kamenoko station is approximately 80 minutes from Okayama by a stopping service, or 60 minutes by a fast service (Rapid Kotobuki). There are 1-2 trains per hour on each direction. The turtle rock itself is about 250 yds from the station.

50 years on: a Comparison (part 1)...General Topics

*This article is a part of "50 years on: a comparison" series, comparing two train timetables of JR (and Japanese National Railways) and how things have changed in the last 50 years.

General Topics - 50 years on: a Comparison (part 1)

Before looking into specific lines or trains and compare how they have changed in the last 50 years, it might be useful to focus on general comparisons between 1973 and 2023, such as fare schemes and services.

Basic rules are mostly unchanged: JR companies have adopted almost the same schemes that Japanese National Railways developed. For example, all passengers have to purchase a basic fare ticket, and those who wish to take fast trains (such as bullet train or limited express) or choose Green Car (first class) have to buy another one. A student discount (gakuwari) has been available at a rate of 20%, and there is another discount of 10% for a long-distance return ticket.

Then, what are main differences?

Prices

100 yen bank note

Needless to say, prices were very much different from what we know today. According to the Cabinet Office, the consumer price index (2015 = 100) was 39.3 in 1973. In conjunction with two other articles (the one from Nikkei and the other from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications), the index was roughly equivalent to 106.3 in December 2022. Hence, prices in theory became approximately 2.7 times higher in the last 50 years.

However, it is not strictly applicable to railway fares as follows:

	1973 (A)	2023 (B)	B/A
Minimum single fare	30	140	4.7
Single fare (Tokyo - Yokohama)	120	480	4.0
Season ticket* (Toyohashi - Nagoya)	39,480	187,520	4.7
Season ticket* (Kyoto - Osaka, high school)	6,860	37,260	5.4
Tokyo - Shin-Osaka (bullet train)	4,130	14,720	3.6
Seat reservation ticket (general)	300	530	1.7
Class B berth (lowest)	1,100	6,600	6.0
Nippon Car Rental (Toyota Corolla)**	5,500	10,760	2.0
Starting salary for university graduates	62,300	225,400	3.6

*Six months  **24 hours

These figures show that the CPI comparison is not always helpful. It is difficult to say whether JNR fares had been disproportionately cheap or JR fares have been disproportionately expensive. It is worth noting that Japan had been struggling with severe inflation in the mid-1970s even before the global energy crisis. The CPI rose by 4.9% in 1972, 11.7% in 1973 and 23.2% in 1974. Even so, the Diet refused to dramatically raise train fares so that the financial crisis that Japanese National Railways had been suffered from went even worse.

Express service

Today, JR companies provide limited express services on various lines, many of which are long-distance journeys. Limited express is fast and comfortable just like intercity services in Europe. However, limited express was literally "limited" in the past, and there were many "express" services that were cheaper, slower and less comfortable than limited express trains.

How much were they different? It depends on services, but for example, services from Ueno in Tokyo to Fukushima were as follows:

Express Matsushima 1	3 hrs 53 min	¥1,940
Limited Express Hibari 4	2 hrs 59 min	¥1,440
Direct stopping service	6 hrs 13 min	¥1,140
(Bullet train in 2023)	1 hrs 29 min	¥8,900

It might also be worth noting that train numbers are fixed today (odd numbers for down/outbound services, while even numbers for up/inbound services), but there was no such rule in 1973. The rule was adopted in October 1978.

To improve services and increase income, JNR had gradually upgraded express trains to limited express services particularly since the early-1980s. After the privatisation of JNR in 1987, JR companies pursued the policy. The last regular express service was discontinued in 2016.

Night trains

There were many night trains across the country. There were not only limited express but also express trains. For example, there were 17 night trains departed Tokyo station towards west on Tokaido Main Line, including Limited Express Sakura (Tokyo 16:30 – Nagasaki 11:51). Express Takachiho sounded a little extreme, as it ran more than 28 hours with no bed or restaurant (Tokyo 10:00 – Nishi-Kagoshima 14:14, via Miyazaki). There were even overnight stopping services WITH bed: a stopping service via Kisei Main Line calling at all stations departed Nagoya at 15:15 arrived at Tennoji in Osaka at 5:00, with sleeper coaches available from Shingu (22:40). All services abovementioned ran daily.

Today, there are only two regular night trains: Sleeper Limited Express Sunrise Seto (Tokyo - Takamatsu) and Sunrise Izumo (Tokyo - Izumoshi).

Dining car and buffet

Most limited express services (including Shinkansen trains) and some express services had a dining or a buffet car. Sadly, this book does not contain food and beverage menu as JNR stopped publishing it. According to Akira Torizuka (an incumbent CEO of Echigo Tokimeki Railway), there were three menus in a 1972 timetable: for bullet trains, ordinary trains and ferry services. There were, for example, curry and rice (180 yen), ham sandwich (180 yen), beef stew (330 yen), zaru soba noodles (80 yen), crisps (50 yen), coffee/tea (100 yen), sparkling water (50 yen) and a large bottle of beer (200 yen).

Today, there are very few dining cars remain, and all of them are for railtours.

They are the major differences about general topics I have noticed so far when looking into timetables of 1973 and 2023. More articles will be published in due course (once a month), and we will see specific lines or areas in detail.

On Kintetsu Aoniyoshi

On Monday 3 April, my parents and I enjoyed a 34-minute journey on Kintetsu Aoniyoshi, a sightseeing train in ancient capitals in Japan. Unlike other articles on this blog, I wrote my thoughts about this sightseeing train which is popular among tourists below.

Aoniyoshi was rebuilt in 2022 from an old intercity train called 12200 series New Snack Car, which dated back to the late-1960s. Aoniyoshi was renumbered to 19200 series, and there is only one unit. It was originally built in 1975, and it is known for being used by not only Emperor Hirohito but also Queen Elizabeth II.

Aoniyoshi is painted purple, the colour that aristocrats in Heian Period (794-1185) regarded as the noblest, with Raden patterns (the decorative technique using pearl shells). Seats were specifically designed by a furniture manufacturer. Windows became larger and the train became fully-accessible. The train capacity is 84 passengers, while it was originally 260.

There are two types of accommodation: "twin-seat" and "salon". Both classes charge the same special fares, but they are affordable enough for tourists. For example, the journey I took from Kyoto to Nara took 1,300 yen per person, of which 570 yen for a basic fare ticket and 730 yen for the special Aoniyoshi ticket.

This is the "twin-seat" for an individual or a group of two. Seats on coaches 1, 3 and 4 are all like this. It might be difficult to figure out from the photo above, but lights and walls have their own patterns. There is a designated seat for wheelchair users on coach 3.

Coach 2 has Salon seats, which are effectively compartments though there is no door between the seats and the corridor. It is for a group of 3-4 people, and there are only three rooms. Salon is very popular and thus difficult to make a reservation, so I had to purchase tickets online seconds after they were available (i.e. 10 am on the day a month before).

There is a little shop selling refreshments on coach 2, but there was a long queue. Since the journey only takes half an hour, it might not be wise to spend too much time here.

It is worth noting that a partition has several patterns, and I presume that both of them are related to something traditional. Such features can be seen everywhere on the train including carpets.

There is a card available only on this train, and it can be collected at the shop on coach 2. It proves that you have actually been on Aoniyoshi. It is free of charge, so you should never miss it.

There was only one thing that was regrettable. The noise and vibrations clearly showed that the train was, despite its appearance, nearly 50 years old. I am afraid that Aoniyoshi was far less comfortable than newer trains. Had the journey lasted more than an hour, it would have been a little exhausting.

Even so, the train journey was fun and the time has passed quickly. Since the fares were not ridiculously expensive, I felt it was absolutely good value for money. I was glad to see that both my parents enjoyed the trip.

Aoniyoshi runs between Osaka-Namba or Kyoto and Kintetsu-Nara daily except Thursdays, but schedules might be revised. Those who wish to take the train are advised to check official websites in advance and book tickets online wherever possible.

The Red List of Trains in Japan (Mar-2023 update)

The Red List of Trains in Japan has been updated with 8 new articles. More importantly, many existing articles have the latest information reflecting the annual timetable revision that took place on Saturday 18th March. For instance:

In Hokkaido, KiHa 283 series has been reinstated as Limited Express Okhotsk and Taisetsu, replacing KiHa 183 series of Japanese National Railways;

JR East 651 series, once known as Super Hitachi and until recently used for Limited Express Akagi and Kusatsu, retired;

JR Central KiHa 85 series was withdrawn from Limited Express Hida;

And the biggest railway project in a decade, Sotetsu and Tokyu Shin-Yokohama Lines finally opened and the new through-services to and from Tokyo were launched.

In addition, there were many more minor changes on train allocation and future prospects of certain trains.

Finally, the new eight articles are as follows:

• Hankai Mo 161 series
• Hankai Mo 351 series
• Hankai Mo 501 series
• Hankai Mo 601 series
• Hankai Mo 701 series
• Hankai 1001 series Sakai Tram
• Hankai 1101 series
• Yokohama Subway 4000 series

Confusing routes, confusing displays

On Saturday 18 March 2023, two new lines were added to Tokyo's railway network: Sotetsu and Tokyu Shin-Yokohama lines. Sotetsu Shin-Yokohama line was extended from Hazawa yokohama-kokudai (hereinafter referred to as Hazawa YK) to Shin-Yokohama, while Tokyu Shin-Yokohama line was opened from Shin-Yokohama to Hiyoshi. There are now hundreds of through-services every day from Sotetsu to Tokyo via Tokyu lines and vice versa.

As the biggest railway project in more than a decade has been completed at last, it is expected that Shin-Yokohama, an interchange station of Tokaido Shinkansen high-speed rail, will be even more convenient and easier to access for people not just in Kanagawa Prefecture but also western part of Greater Tokyo.

However, when I visited the new stations on the very first day, I found that the new through-services are confusing and even chaotic as described below.

This is a route map on a wall. It covers all stations managed by SEVEN railway companies that the new through-services would call at: namely Sotetsu lines as well as JR Saikyo line, Tokyu Meguro and Toyoko lines, Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin and Namboku lines, Toei Mita line, Saitama Railway Saitama Stadium line and Tobu Tojo line. It is extremely hard to find one's destination without help.

Destination displays show confusing information as well. In Japan, trains that call at every station are generally written as "Local" with white (or black) letters. But this display is so colourful that it is not easy to comprehend what do they mean. Displays on trains also adopt the same colour patterns. Apparently not a good idea for those with colour vision deficiency.

The colourful displays indicate routes of each train, as (hopefully) the map above shows. Since trains for Tokyu Toyoko line and others for JR Saikyo line run towards the same direction, it is vital to make it clear which line does the train go. For example, there are trains for Ikebukuro via Tokyu Toyoko and Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin lines and others via JR Saikyo line. The most confusing ones can be observed in the weekend morning: a train departing Hazawa YK at 7:51 is for Kawagoe via Saikyo line, while another one at 7:55 is for Kawagoeshi via Toyoko, Fukutoshin and Tobu Tojo lines. Both trains call at Ikebukuro despite they run completely different lines. Not a few passengers will certainly take a wrong train and thus pay 140 yen more than what was supposed to be.

Any timetable revision always causes a certain level of misunderstanding and confusion, but the Sotetsu-Tokyu through-services are hard for everyone. Generally speaking, a new railway is something to be welcomed, but these new ones are quite tricky.