Transportation / Mobility

January 2, 2010

 

Tokyo Launches Park & Ride Shuttle Bus Service to Ease Traffic Jams in Shinjuku

Keywords: Local government Transportation / Mobility 

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) began a "Park & Ride" shuttle bus service on September 27, 2009. The service utilizes the shuttle bus "Shinjuku WE Bus" launched by Shinjuku Ward and the parking lot for Tokyo Metropolitan Main Building No.1. Using this system, people who drive into the Shinjuku area can park their cars in the parking lot and take the shuttle bus to the center of Shinjuku. The aim is to both alleviate traffic congestion and reduce the impact on the environment.

The users of the service are given free parking for the first hour, discounted bus fare, and free parking for a certain number of hours depending on the amount of goods they purchase at department stores and other partnering stores and restaurants in the area. Starting from West Exit of Shinjuku Station, the bus completes a roughly 5 kilometer loop taking roughly 35 to 40 minutes and makes stops at 10 stops. It runs every 15 minutes on weekdays and every 10 minutes on weekends and holidays.

If 10 minutes of engine idling is eliminated when waiting for parking space in congested areas, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions can be reduced by the amount equivalent to that of switching off a 40-watt fluorescent lamp for about 20 hours or using five less plastic shopping bags.

The TMG has positioned this system as a pivotal part of measures aiming "To make Tokyo the city with the least environmental impact in the world" as well as "To work with citizens and private corporations to realize a society using low CO2-emitting cars" in the 2009 program for "Tokyo's Big Change: The 10-Year Plan."

Kanazawa Introduces Online Trip-Planning to Promote Park-and-Ride Commuting (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/en/pages/027031.html
Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) Efforts Spreading in Japan No.65 (January 2008)
http://www.japanfs.org/en/mailmagazine/newsletter/pages/
027843.html

Posted: 2010/01/02 06:00:15 AM

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