New Transit Yurikamome (新交通ゆりかもめ Shinkōtsū Yurikamome) is an automated guideway transit service operated by the Tokyo Waterfront New Transit Corporation, connecting Shinbashi to Ariake on the artificial island of Odaiba in Tokyo, Japan.

The line is named after the black-headed seagull (yurikamome in Japanese), a common denizen of Tokyo Bay and the official prefectural bird.

Technology

Yurikamome is Tokyo's first fully automated transit system, controlled entirely by computers with no drivers on board. This is actually not even particularly new technology — Japan's first AGT, Kobe's Port Liner , opened in 1981, 14 years before the Yurikamome — but it still surprises many a tourist.

Yurikamome is often incorrectly called a monorail, and the elevated concrete track does resemble a monorail at first glance, but the track is actually just a funnel and the trains are supported by two rows of rubber wheels. The rail in the center of the track serves only to guide the train, not support it, so it does not qualify as a monorail.

History

Before its 1995 opening, it was widely feared that the Yurikamome would end up as a multibillion-yen boondoggle. The artificial island of Odaiba, which it serves, had been designed and constructed at prodigious expense before Japan's economic crash and, much like London's equally beleaguered Canary Wharf, there simply didn't seem to be enough demand to support it.

The first few months of operation provided a slight sigh of relief, as ridership hovered around 27000 passengers per day, only a little less than the predicted 29000... but still far, far less than the 80000 pax needed to be profitable. However, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government was for once on the ball, and in 1996 Odaiba was rezoned from pure business and residential to also permit entertainment zones.

Tokyo may be next to the sea on the map, but before Odaiba, effectively the entire coastline had been taken over by an endless concrete strip of ports and warehouses. Promoted as the "Rainbow Town", the island provided Tokyo with a strip of liveable seaside, and it became an instant hit. Within one year, ridership doubled to 60000, and as more and more of the restaurants, shopping malls, exhibition centers and museums opened, the traffic kept growing and growing. On May 4, 1997, during Golden Week, the system was completely maxed out when 130,000 people tried to board in a single day.

And it wasn't just the island that they were going to, the Yurikamome had become an attraction in itself. To hoist itself from sea level to the Rainbow Bridge, the Yurikamome does a rather spectacular 270-degree loop, providing panoramic views of both mainland Tokyo and Odaiba. Easily accessible and comfortable despite its technological prowess, most islandgoers continue to opt for the Yurikamome despite its high price, with the fares of 180 to 370 yen of being nearly twice that of a normal subway.

Future

The Yurikamome's future looks bright: at over 100,000 passengers per day, the Yurikamome is making a net profit and will pay off its loans in full faster than the 20 years originally anticipated. Operating frequency, hours of operation and number of trainsets have been continually revised upwards to accommodate for the ever-increasing number of passengers.

Construction is now in progress to extend the line from its current terminus in Ariake to Toyosu on the Tokyo Metro Yurakucho Line. Construction is expected to be complete in March 2006.

Stations

• Shimbashi Station
• Shiodome Station
• Takeshiba Station
• Hinode Station
• Shibaura Futo Station
• Odaiba Kaihin Koen Station
• Daiba Station
• Fune no Kakagu-kan Station
• Telecom Center Station
• Aomi Station
• Kokusai Tenjijo Seimon Station
• Ariake Station

See also

• monorails in Japan

External links

• Yurikamome
• Japan Rail and Transport Review article