Japan stops using newspapers to measure train crowding

The Japanese authorities have stopped indicating congestion rates on trains based on whether passengers can comfortably read newspapers and magazines while on board.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) revised its guidelines on train congestion rates to better reflect the change in the habits of train passengers, according to local media reports.

The crowding level on the trains is no longer indicated by whether or not the passengers can open their newspaper or weekly magazine on the go, as fewer people do it nowadays compared to two decades ago when such guidelines were first introduced.

The MLIT has used illustrations to portray train congestion in an easy-to-understand manner since at least 2001, with comic-strip-like pictures accompanied by short explanations. For example, 100% meant “full capacity,” but a passenger could still find a seat, hold onto a strap, or a pole near the door.

A 150% congestion rate was defined as having “enough space to comfortably read a newspaper,” 180% as possible to read a newspaper “if you make an effort to fold it,” and 200% as “considerable physical contact between bodies to feel pressure, but you can still read something like a weekly magazine.”

At 250% congestion rate, however, reading was probably unlikely as “every time the train shakes, your body tilts and you can’t move, making it difficult to use your hands.”

The MLIT consulted with railway operators and experts to come up with new expressions, but opted against using smartphones as a reference due to concerns over whether it is appropriate to use smartphones on crowded trains at all.

The new guidelines were updated to make no reference to print publications, simply stating that “there is enough space that shoulders do not touch” and “more people gather near the doors” at 150% congestion rate, while “shoulders touch, creating a slight feeling of pressure” at 180% with people near the doors feeling “cramped.”

At 200%, “bodies touch, creating a significant feeling of pressure,” while “people near the doors cannot move.” A congestion rate of 250% is no longer described in the guidelines and the illustrations are gone as well.

The Japanese government has been on a move to get rid of anachronistic regulation regarding the out-of-date technology. It has recently declared a victory in “a war” on floppy disks after scrapping over a 1,000 laws requiring their use for government business.