Japan stops measuring train crowding by ease of newspaper readership
- Reference: 1722922206
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2024/08/06/japan_train_crowding_measurement/
- Source link:
The Ministry publishes regular reports detailing congestion rates in major metropolitan areas. Those documents have previously used the charming illustration below to depict different levels of crowding:
[1]
Japanese train congestion measurements – Click to enlarge
Machine translation of the categories in the above illustration yield the following explanations:
100 percent The train is at capacity (you can sit in a seat, hold on to a strap, or hold on to a pillar near the door);
150 percent You can easily open and read a newspaper;
180 percent If you make an effort to fold it, you can read a newspaper;
200 percent There is a lot of pressure from physical contact, but you can still read a weekly magazine;
250 percent Every time the train shook, my body tilted and I couldn't move, not even my hands.
Last Friday, the Ministry published its latest [2]congestion report [PDF] and ditched both the graphic and newspaper/magazine metric, which Japanese media [3]report have been used since at least 2001.
The changes to congestion ratings are explained as necessary to make them more up-to-date, and to reflect the opinions of "experts and others."
[4]Japan mandates app to ensure national ID cards aren't forged
[5]Ridesharing makes new and unique mess in Japan's taxi industry
[6]Japanese space agency spotted zero-day attacks while cleaning up raid on M365
[7]HPE to build supercomputer to 'enhance Japan's AI sovereignty'
The Register suspects one reason for the change is that nobody reads physical newspapers or magazines any more, making ratings based on printed publications archaic.
The new ratings are:
100 percent You can either sit in your seat, hold onto the strap in front of your seat, or hold onto the pillar near the door;
150 percent Shoulders do not touch. There will be more people near the door;
180 percent Shoulders touch and there is a slight sense of pressure. The person near the door feels cramped and has difficulty turning around;
200 percent Bodies are touching and there is a great sense of pressure. People near the door are unable to move.
The Register 's famous [8]Standards Converter offers excellent ways to measure area, force, length, temperature, volume, weight, velocity, and money.
This news from Japan suggests we should also contemplate a metric for train crowding.
If so, how do you suggest we measure it? We can imagine odor, discernibility of music leaking from adjacent earbuds, and likelihood of being whacked by inconsiderate students' backpacks as starting points. Have at it in the comments, dear reader. ®
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[1] https://regmedia.co.uk/2024/08/06/screenshot_japan_train_congestion.jpg
[2] https://www.mlit.go.jp/report/press/content/001758082.pdf
[3] https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20240805/p2a/00m/0na/022000c
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2024/08/02/japan_smartcard_verification_app/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/31/ride_hailing_japan_accusation/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/11/jaxa_m365_zeroday_attacks/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/12/hpe_to_build_supercomputer_to/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/Design/page/reg-standards-converter.html
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZrH0RQyKk6Q5QOr4FREg0AAAAEM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[10] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Fishy
> This news from Japan suggests we should also contemplate a metric for train crowding
Might I humbly suggest this unit be known as the sardine
Re: Fishy
There's no plaice even for sardines
Re: Fishy
But a crowded RER in Paris means that people are *serrés comme dans une boite à sardine*
( as tigh as in a sardine can ).
Now, to be honest, the Japanese subways/local trains raise that to another level.
Re: Fishy
If your suggestion isn't taken up you'll be carp-ing on about it non-stop
Re: Fishy
We'll have none of this Euro-centric sardine stuff in El Reg if you don't mind.
I'll raise you one Pilchard.
You Kernow it makes sense.
Re: Fishy
I'll raise you one Pilchard.
Up that to one Brisling. :)
Re: Fishy
Supporting the sardine.
But, having had both the pleasure to travel in Tokyo's rush hour and the displeasure doing the same in London (and other major city in Europe and the western hemisphere), for the latter I'd suggest to optionally use a metric measuring the ability to escape the rotten sardine smell emitted from fellow passengers.
Lets improve the other metrics first
Honestly, until the British train companies improve the metrics for trains-actually-turning-up, trains-getting-to-their-destination-vaguely-on-time, and trains-not-turning-into-a-bus-replacement-service-half-way-through-the-journey, then I'm not so interested in the train-overcrowding one.
Re: Lets improve the other metrics first
Britain seems to have a unique desire to spend large sums of money to make railways services worse.
HS2 will, in the end, further reduce rail capacity between London (well, Wormwood Scrubs for the foreseeable future) and Manchester which means [1]higher fares to deter travel to manage the consequent overcrowding.
Also in Manchester, the Ordsall Chord (a short, but expensive piece of railway, originally proposed in the 1970s, allowing trains from Victoria Station to loop back round to Piccadilly) was supposed to provide better connectivity and a wider choice of routes through the city. It's largely unused because the necessary improvements to the Castlefield Corridor weren't made and therefore any additional trains would simply delay the existing ones.
It's almost as if politicians had no concept of public transport outside London.
[1] https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/train-price-hikes-fewer-seats-hs2-cancellation-3123426
Re: Lets improve the other metrics first
or even
"It's almost as if politicians had no concept of public transport"
Podcast level
When you can hear the podcast from the ear of a fellow traveller better than your own.... (and yes it's 2 techbros talking bollocks drowning out Marina Hyde)
Based on my former commute Munich U2 Königsplatz - Moosfeld, a measurement metric based how many Münchners are having a Augustiner Hell while traveling to/from work? 0 Hells - packed car, 1-2 Hells - room to stand, 3+ - room to sit
I have a suggestion for 250%
Exceedingly close and uncomfortable as unable to avoid eye contact with other passengers
Re: I have a suggestion for 250%
Just adjust the knob on your left size to change your height to either 4' 6" or 6' 6"
Re: I have a suggestion for 250%
> Just adjust the knob on your left
Which takes close contact to a new level of intimacy
I think it should be...
...based on the odds of any two passengers of a given train having the same MAC addresses for the WiFi NIC's on their portable devices. It would avoid the need to expand or switch the metric for the foreseeable future.
Sorry, I'll read that again.
200 percent There is a lot of pressure from physical contact, but you can still read a weekly magazine;
At first glance I read this as "...There is a lot of pleasure..." which hit the cognitive emergency brakes.
Given the subjects of the Chrysanthemum throne have a few quaint traditions some involving sharp implements and exposed bellies I had to reread this to allay my misgivings.
Otherwise I might have suggested the rego unit might be Jollies with 200% = 1 Jolly but clearly at 2.0 Jollies the ability to still read a magazine is extremely unlikely.
Why people choose to live this life in crowded cities is beyond my understanding
Barking spiders and air biscuits...
Air biscuits.
Nobody mentioned air biscuits and barking spiders yet?