There are lots of touches that make Tokyo easy to navigate and pleasant to wander.
Raised lines indicate a continuous path along the sidewalk that the seeing-impaired can follow.
At corners, the path runs into a strip of raised dots to indicate the curb.
The dots Ive seen in many cities; the lines, never before.
Asan engineers blog post explains, there are also panels of raised dots to indicate turns and forking paths.
While these stripes are only on certain streets, they still form a surprisingly wide internet around the city.
Crosswalk Countdowns
In Tokyo, pedestrians strictly obey crosswalk signals, which is against my religion.
But the wait for the crosswalk is made more bearable by the crosswalk indicators at some intersections.
Ive seen plenty of walk countdowns before.
The countdowns arent numbers; theyre two lines of LEDs on either side of the signal.
(In the photo above, the green lines are just above the walking-man signal.)
As time runs out, they shrink, like reverse progress bars.
Tokyos sidewalks are often crowded, especially since pedestrians share them with bikes.
This wouldnt work in a place with as many delivery bikers as New York.
And its still less pleasant than pedestrian-only sidewalks.
It only took me a day to get used to switching sides.
Its no stricter than it is in New York, just an unwritten rule that keeps things moving smoothly.
Designated Smoking Sections
You cant smoke on the street in central Tokyo.
This should be true everywhere with pedestrian traffic.
Its not that people dont smoke in Tokyo.
There are plenty of cigarettes for sale at every kiosk and convenience store.
But smokers have to find designated stands, or go to an establishment with a smoking section.
Its just not super common.
Day and night, people walk down the middle of these streets.)
A bunch of people walking around without smoking, eating, or catching up on podcasts.
Is that relaxing or stressful?
Slick Subway Signage
Tokyos subway system was easy to navigate…compared to New York.
Nor does it constantly declare that your train is suddenly taking a detour.
The trains are quiet and the announcements come out loud and clear in multiple languages.
It would take major work to bring other city transit up to this level.
But theres a big factor that every city could easily, cheaply implement: thoughtful signage.
This extra info helps you confirm that youre going the right way, on the right train.
And Tokyos subways help you do it.
(A lot more than youll see in New York.)
And the signs on the wall will usually indicate the next stop and even the last stop.
And the raised yellow lines help the sight-impaired find their way onto the train.
Now, the system isnt perfect.
And the trains dont run all night.
But Id still trade in New Yorks trains for Tokyos in a second.
Hot Vending Machines
Tokyo has tons of vending machines.
Theres water and soda and iced tea, but most machines I saw also offerhot coffee.
Several brands and varieties of it.
Paper cups and plastic lids are stupid, and we should all be buying hot coffee in a can.
But, to my horror, many of these cafes dont open until 10.
So its helpful to have a 24-hour self-serve option.
Plus a lot of the vending machines accept payment via metro card.
Train Station Bathrooms
Tokyo has bathrooms in every train station.
This saved me when Igot diarrhea on my trip.
Widely available bathrooms are a quality of life issue.
So as Lifehackers Patrick Allen has advised,carry around a handkerchief.
(Some public bathrooms have a bum-washing spray, and everywhere I went had toilet paper.)
No Trash Cans
Tokyo doesnt have trash cans on the curb.
Youd think this would be a downside!
And it can be a pain to carry trash around in the street or on the train.
