[dagw]

No public transport system is great at rush hour. Still having used the 'subway' in both London and Tokyo at rush hour, I much prefer Tokyo.

[dustedcodes]

You must be trolling.

In London even during the rush hour you get a seat when you are disabled or pregnant.

In Tokyo you end up pregnant when you enter the train:

https://noisebreak.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/oshiya.jpg

[johnwalkr]

Based on the fashion and film grain, that picture is probably 30 years old. I lived in Tokyo recently, for 5 years, and saw this maybe 3 times, all at special occasions, such as on the way to a large fireworks festival. I've experienced train pushers in Vancouver during the 2010 Olympics, too. Yes, many trains are uncomfortably crowded at rush hour but I've experienced the same in Europe. Maybe slightly worse in Europe, because at least the train tends to be on time and the ticket machines and turnstiles always work in Japan.

[WastingMyTime89]

In Paris train pushers are just a convenient excuse for you to ram the idiots standing clueless in the middle of the carriage towards the aisles where they should have gone from the start while pretending it’s not your fault anyway.

It’s nearly as enjoyable as getting someone out of the way so you can get in said aisles yourself and avoid being compressed next to the doors at rushed hours.

[dagw]

Is that still a thing? I never saw any oshiya when I was there 5 years ago.

[dustedcodes]

It was a thing before COVID in Tokyo. Don’t know about now. The point I’m trying to make is that this thing NEVER happens in London. Train pushers don’t exist, so even if it’s not an everyday thing in Tokyo anymore I can hardly believe that anyone would say “I prefer the rush hour in Tokyo”, to which my previous post was the response to :)

[dagw]

Even if the trains in Tokyo are more packed (debatable, but I'll concede it for now), there is more to commuting than that. The reliability of the service, the cleanliness or the stations and carriages, the (lack of) pushing and shoving on and on the way to the platform, the temperature and ventilation of the stations and carriages etc. Tokyo wins in all these measurement.

[dustedcodes]

Fair enough. Overall I agree, the train system in Japan is heaven. It's almost unfair to compare them with other train systems in the world.

[bobthepanda]

I mean, TfL just closes stations to people entering if crowding gets too high, which is arguably worse from a functionality perspective at least.

[tjpnz]

It's still very much a thing on some lines but if you time your commute right you'll never experienced it.

[bobthepanda]

Train congestion has been falling with the decline in population.

Also, the pandemic has really sped up adoption of either wfh, partial wfh, or commuting during “shoulder” hours instead of the peak of peak, from what I’ve heard.

[fomine3]

Population is increasing in high density area, but wfh and time shifting are true