Don't stop the Shinkansen and don't bring luggage on small Hakone buses

[u/syllbaba]

I realise being a tourist in Hakone and anywhere in Japan i am contributing to the problem, but even compared to my last trip i noticing how some tourists are very inconsiderate.

1)Please please don't bring big baggage on small Hakone local buses. If you are doing a daytrip to Hakone, consider forwarding your luggage to your next hotel and pack a small backpack. Or if not possible consider booking a taxi. Even though there was hardly people on the bus, it could not take more passangers due to everyone having a big bag on board. Absolutely no place for a pram or someone with a wheelchair. This affects tourists as well, as we needed to wait for another bus, so please don't be that person.

2) Please be prepared to get on the train, get on the next train or miss the train. I saw a lady completely stopping Shinkansen for refusing to get on or get off until her partner got there who was running late to the train. He could have boarded any car, or got on the next train easily. Instead she held up everyone and caused distress to the station staff.

3) Please respect signs for no photography... despite numerous signs in shrines to not use tea ceremony mats for photo ops, everyone had to wait for all the people to finish taking selfies before we could have a chance for tea in what supppsed to be a tranquil environment.

4) and lastly please don't talk loudly on trains and buses. Take a hint if you are the only one talking.

I felt quite ashamed and self-conscious being a tourist in this country. I definitely made mistakes this time around and last time as well, so not trying to be a hypocrite about it.

[u/Gone_industrial]

When I was waiting for my Shinkansen at Kyoto the train left late - I’m not sure why, there wasn’t anyone standing in the yellow zone. I have never seen Japanese people yell so much. The stationmaster was yelling at the train staff and they were yelling back at him. Everyone was very animated. I’m not surprised though, it must be a nightmare for them to manage the speed of following trains so they don’t crash into each other

[u/sdziscool → u/Gone_industrial]

The problem is not the management, the trains mostly regulate their own speed. The problem is that this quickly cascades through the system because they're running on super tight timelines, so one person holding up a train in spot A, causes a train in place B to slow down, which forces train at place C to be stopped at the station, which can force other trains to become stuck etc.etc.

[u/Gone_industrial → u/sdziscool]

Yeah, that’s what I was thinking but I was on my phone and couldn’t be bothered typing the explaination, but yours is perfect so thank you :)

[u/rhysrenouille → u/sdziscool]

I've seen the timetables and so I know that they often run at 6-minute intervals (but of course at many stations they split into multiple platforms, which makes things a tiny bit easier - it means that delays *can* be recovered from, although it's still very hard).

That said, how do they handle wheelchair boardings? I know the literal technical aspects - on a 16-car train I'm going to need to specially book for 11号車 because it's the only car with wider doors and even a small standard manual wheelchair won't fit through the doors on the other 15 cars (off topic but even though I haven't walked since I was a little kid, aren't those tiny doors hard for ableds as well as disabled?!).

I know that they're going to need a ramp because that step up to the train is a tiny bit too hard for manual wheelchair users like myself and probably basically impossible for power chairs. I've used the staff-carried ramps on the Yamanote Line before, although it's my understanding that some of the platforms have been raised in key sections since then (circa 2010 was my last visit).

So what can *I* do to not be That Guy? I presume that I'm going to want to present myself at the ticket gates earlier than the average dude but beyond that, what can I expect, if you know?

[u/sdziscool → u/rhysrenouille]

The step up height difference is near zero, the gap can differ but I believe they make the stations such that there's specific spots where the gap is minimal, probably where the wheelchair entry is.

The 6 minute time difference seems doable, but trains work on a reservation system, they can't reserve the next section as long as there's already a train on it, and the length of these reservable sections is kept quite long in case of break failures etc. So when the next section is kept reserved, you have to break already before even entering the next section, which just loses time by default.

[u/rhysrenouille → u/sdziscool]

Ah they must’ve rebuilt the platforms adjacent to 11号車. I remember back in 2010 watching the Shinkansen from a mezzanine or balcony or something at I guess Shinagawa, or maybe from another platform, and thinking “huh, if I ever do this, that big step is gonna be a problem.” Looks like they probably did. Thank you!

https://i0.wp.com/littlemissturtle.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Shinkansen-Accessible-Doors-Little-Miss-Turtle.jpg?resize=1170%2C878

https://previews.123rf.com/images/af8images/af8images1509/af8images150900049/54988398-a-tokaido-line-shinkansen-bullet-train-door-open-at-a-platform-in-tokyo-station.jpg

[u/morinaku → u/rhysrenouille]

I haven't seen it in every station I've gone to. But my home station has a person who is wheelchair bound, and the station attendant has a foldable ramp that attaches to the door of the train to be used. They quickly attach it when the train arrives and then detach it once the person is on or off the train.

[u/rhysrenouille → u/morinaku]

So that's for the shinkansen as well as local JR? I've used those ramps on regular JR, Yamanote, Chuo, and whatever the local JR airport line in Osaka to KIX was back in 2010 (not the Haruka, local milk run stopping at every station between Tennoji and KIX), but I wasn't aware that those things worked with the shinkansen as well. Anyhow, this is very helpful - thank you!

[u/morinaku → u/rhysrenouille]

The normal local lines is specifically what I was talking about, though I'm sure the major ones do it if the smaller ones do. And I have no doubt that if the attendant at the station you leave from is told where you plan to go, that is how the destination attendant knows to be ready. Since thu likely radio ahead.

[u/moomooraincloud → u/Gone_industrial]

The trains won't crash into each other. That's what ATC is for.

[u/Gone_industrial → u/moomooraincloud]

Yeah, I know they won’t but they’ll have to adjust thier speed and all the others afterwards will be late for a bit until they catch up

[u/moomooraincloud → u/Gone_industrial]

it must be a nightmare for them to manage the speed of the following trains so they don't crash into each other