When looking at the Tokyo rail map, which is always a must to keep on you when in Tokyo, keep two things in mind: the colour of the line you want to take, and the name of the line. All official station (and train for that matter) signage has English as well. Now lets put any fears at bay now: all train stations have bilingual signage! Don't worry about not knowing where you are, what platform goes where, or what exit takes you where. The greatest part of Tokyo is the fact that it's never a far walk to a train station, there is a reason it's the most used train system in the world (besides being safe, clean and running on time 99.9% of the time). Now the other part of train life in Tokyo: the stations. You will find them at many major stations, with clear signage and maps showing where they can take you. Now there are many more private rail companies in Tokyo (more than seven in fact), which cover certain areas, and focus more on covering regional Tokyo and beyond. The great thing about Tokyo and the separate train companies, is that they all seemingly work together in harmony, with many sharing train stations, public walkways and space, so you can get from one to the other in the same building/complex. Between the two of them, they criss cross and cover the majority of central Tokyo, particularly all the major stops inside the Yamanote Line Loop. Toei is the smaller network of the two, running 4 subway lines under Tokyo, and Tokyo Metro run 9 subway lines. In Tokyo there are two subway companies that runs the underground rail, Toei Subway and Tokyo Metro. SubwaysĪlthough for newcomers to Tokyo, who may arrive with a JR Rail pass in hand, you can survive on using just the JR Rail, the sprawling subway trains of Tokyo cover all the middle ground that JR misses, as well as covering most of the JR area as well. JR Rail in Tokyo also have Shinkansen Stations at Shinagawa, Tokyo, and Ueno Stations. Keihin - Tohoku Line - Similar to the Saikyo, this line runs along the eastern side of the Yamanote line and beyond out to Yokohama. Saikyo Line - This runs alongside the Yamanote Line on the western side of the loop and beyond. The big differences between the local and rapid is the amount of stations it actually stops at, if the rapid is stopping where you need to go, take it! It's main starting and ending points are Shinjuku and Tokyo Station, two of the major stations in Tokyo. These lines cut across the middle of the Yamanote line's circle, getting you anywhere in the middle of central Tokyo. It may take you longer than others, however all the trains have screens above the doors that are multilingual, that tell you what station is next, any delays, what carriage you're in, and also the next stations platform map to help you navigate where to next!Ĭhuo/Sobu Lines - Now there are a couple of Lines here, the Chuo/Sobu Local and the Chou Rapid. Yamanote Line - This is the a giant loop around central Tokyo, hitting most major points, if you're a bit scared by it all, start out with using the Yamanote Line. In Tokyo they have many lines, however a few major lines cover most areas of central Tokyo and, especially if you have a JR Rail Pass, can get you where you need to go 95% of the time. JR Rail, the once owned government rail company, still with its sub companies, cover most of the tracks in Japan, especially in Tokyo. For the most part, these are run by JR Rail, there are different sub companies of JR Rail, however, in Tokyo it is all run by the one, JR East. When you're in Tokyo, you will see a lot of above ground rail. For a first timer, what you need to know is the three major train companies, as they run the bulk of the lines you will use. Okay, so the first thing you need to understand is that the rail networks, for the most part, are privatized, and different companies run different sections of the tracks, stations and more.
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