Alexandru Arba
Research expert covering Japan
Rapid transit and commuter rail in Japan - statistics & facts
Rapid transit and commuter rail are significant infrastructural foundations of Japan. They support its urban world, where more than two in three of the population reside, densely permeating the metropolitan areas. These two kinds of railways are complemental, intra-regional networks designed to carry masses of people at a high frequency. Millions of suburban residents commute via rail to an urban center and transfer, if necessary, to rapid transit, such as a subway line, to reach their desks in an office building. This track has been Japan's railway-shaped urbanism – until the COVID-19 pandemic forced society to avoid crowds.
Many urban railways have underground sections, yet, the major subway operators are only ten; the two largest by operating length are Tokyo Metro and Osaka Metro. Both are exceptional as they are incorporated stock companies whose shares are owned by local and national governments. The others, in contrast, are subordinate to the respective municipal administration.
The line between rapid transit and commuter rail
Rapid transit and commuter rail are incoherently-used terms. In Japan, there is no clear cut between the two. It is reasonable to subsume subways, monorails, and specific metropolitan railway lines under (mass) rapid transit, and all other commuter-frequented passenger railways inside metropolitan areas, except for trams, as commuter rails.Many urban railways have underground sections, yet, the major subway operators are only ten; the two largest by operating length are Tokyo Metro and Osaka Metro. Both are exceptional as they are incorporated stock companies whose shares are owned by local and national governments. The others, in contrast, are subordinate to the respective municipal administration.
