Tokyo Prefecture

It’s an open secret that one of the reasons I enjoy living in Japan is that public transportation is held in high regard and promoted by the people as a matter of social, security, and cultural importance. Most people think of the Shinkansen “bullet train” network of high-speed rail routes. However, it only supports a much larger system, and there is an impressive amount of conventional long-distance, commuter, and local lines. In the Greater Tokyo metropolis, they are virtually indistinguishable from most cities’ metros and subways. One of the significant service operators here is Odakyu (Odawara Electric Railway), which, starting from its main terminal in the Shinjuku Station complex, operates service to Odawara and the Fujisawa/Enoshima areas in Kanagawa Prefecture, along with another branch to Karakida in the western Tokyo suburbs. There’s a connection at Yoyogi-Uehara station to Tokyo Metro’s Chiyoda Line. Some trains have direct service to/from the subway and out the other end onto JR’s Joban Line into Chiba Prefecture on the other side of Tokyo. (Seriously, be careful not to sleep on the train!) There’s a high degree of cooperation and coordination between train companies here. It is a real treat to see how each one has…