[lovemenot]

This reply seems to be a good illustration of the attitude described by its parent. The word they is telling.

I live in a city with one of the most cost-effective public transport systems. People in Tokyo tend to think of the railways as an extension of themself / their home / their city. Whereas I imagine most Americans tend to look at such systems from an external perspective: hence "they".

[AznHisoka]

... If my subway was cost-effective, timely, and orderly, I certainly would find it easy to consider it an extension of myself.

So there's nothing special about the Japanese (or bad about New Yorkers)