Trains, trams and customer experience
Whilst in Japan in January, I used the train services quite a lot. Japan is a very densely populated nation and major cities such as Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka are particularly crowded. However the country is somewhat legendary for its efficient and effective train services. Trains are a popular, reliable and speedy way of travelling between major cities in Japan; the trains are clean, signage is clear and you feel safe.
Check out the following two videos showing how Japanese trains stop precisely where they are supposed to (also, I have no idea what the Italian guys are saying…):
Much of this efficient and effective service undoubtedly comes from outstanding infrastructure, timetabling, technology and diligent employees – all of which fall under the responsibility of the operating companies and/or the government. However for the train services to run as planned, it requires passengers to co-operate with the system and other customers.
Customer experience
In the case of public transport, a good* customer experience is often reliant on the behavior and attitudes of other customers. Public transport is a relatively unique situation in our lives when personal space is not respected. No matter how good the public transport service is, if another passenger in our immediate area is disruptive, rude or abusive, the journey experience will be poor. What’s more, a passenger on another train, or on another line, can also affect someone’s journey, such is the interwined and inter-reliant nature of train travel.
(* For the purposes of public transport, I am classifying a ‘good’ experience as one that is happily uneventful!)
The Japanese rail services set clear expectations of passenger behaviour, and these are most often respected. Though I believe some of this behaviour can be attributed to cultural conditioning (cultural/social anthropologists – feel free to step in!), rail passengers understand that respecting the requests made by the rail operators will contribute to a journey that runs on time, is free of disruptions and pleasant for all passengers.
Or maybe they are just shamed into it (see photo below)!?
These are some of the ways in which Japanese rail operators facilitate a good customer experience, and encourage passengers to respect each other:
- Passengers are requested not to take mobile phone calls whilst in the carriage so that others are not disturbed (incidentally, many Japanese train passengers pass the travel time by sleeping, even on the subway!)
- In the subway (or city services), eating or drinking in the carriages is discouraged, meaning less food mess and/or rubbish littering the carriages
- Women-only carriages exist to help women feel safer and avoid any inadvertent ‘touching’ in crowded peak-hour services
- On shinkansen (very fast train) services, ‘quiet’ carriages exist to allow travellers to rest in (almost) complete silence – no announcements are made and patrons are requested not to use electronic equipment
- On long distance trains, the back of the seat in front contains important information about the passenger’s position within the train, and the amenities available in the immediate vicinity (e.g. toilets, vending machines, etc)
- Most stations appear to be staffed, and train conductors (not just the train drivers) keep an eye on the platform to ensure incident-free arrivals and departures
- Marks on the ground indicate where passengers are to stand in order to board the arriving train. There is normally a mark on each side of a door to allow alighting passengers to step off the train before others begin to get on. This system works unbelievably well! (Take note, Melbournians!)
[As an aside, I noticed a similar floor-marking concept to this Japanese one has been introduced into Paris' metro, whereby yellow marks on the ground show commuters where to stand in order to board the arriving train without getting in the way of people getting off. In typical Parisian fashion, no-one was paying attention to these marks, and it was just as difficult as it always has been to fight your way into the carriage! Granted, this is a new concept, but I find there is a large gap between the efficiencies found in the way Japan manages their population (as well as the citizens' acquiescence) and the French culture.]
Recent improvements to Melbourne trams
Anyway, this leads me to something I noticed after arriving back home in Melbourne. Yarra Trams have recently revamped the look of the trams’ exterior (or livery, which I believe is the technical term).
The main difference between this new design and the older one is that the doors are now outlined in yellow. Not only is this new design safer for customers, but it also gives them more information about the location of the doors so it is easier to work out where to stand in order to board the approaching tram.
Melbourne is nowhere near as densely populated as Tokyo, but as we move towards the future with a greater focus on public transport (and a rapidly growing population!), it will be important for the network to become more robust, efficient and effective. Not only that, but greater respect of passengers for each other (and the rules!) should be encouraged to help us all to get where we’re going just that bit faster.
I’d be interested to hear what measures public transport organisations are taking in your city to improve the experience of the commuter. Tell me about it in the comments!
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My favourite feature of the train service in Japan is the station-specific tune that plays as you pull up to the station. With so many people (myself included) nodding off on the way to and from places, the 10 second midi track that you associate as “your stop” oulled me out of my semi-conscious state and saved me heading to the end of the line many many times.
It also gave each and every station a nice touch of personality and charm. Shibuya song = bars!
Yes! Thanks Chris, I had forgotten about that
I’m sure there are heaps of other things too. I should have had my notebook out while I was there, instead of trying to remember it 3 months down the track. There are so many little nuances in what they do, I find it really impressive. But when you have 127 million in such a tight space, you have to find ways of coping!
Train services overseas are a standard above ours here in Melbourne. There are obviously differences in economies of scale, but once you see what the world can offer, you only want the best for your town. Tokyo is one of the best train services in the world, and reading this reminded of the little things in their service, that are fantastic, but which you may forget.