Commuting to Work with Public Transportation

Cities in Japan have very good public transportation systems, which makes it fairly easy to travel both in and between cities. Local public transportation is also facilitated by the use of IC cards, which store money to use on public transportation, such as trains, buses, and even taxis, but can also sometimes be used with vending machines, convenience stores, etc. A large draw for me, as someone from the United States, was the compensated transportation costs. In Japan, compensating employees for their commute is standard, but in North America and Europe, this is not as common.

Furthermore, Japan’s well-developed transportation infrastructure allows for commuter rates, which provide a lowered price for designated commuting routes. The IC card pass can be used in most cases as a commuter pass as well.

Commuter passes can be bought at any station, and many cities have multiple language options for their ticketing machines. Cheaper or ideal routes can be researched with online resources, for those looking to avoid stations with especially bad rush hour traffic.

In the end, regardless of how long or short your commute is, Japan’s existing structure for transportation makes travel relatively easy, and receiving compensation for commuting is a definite advantage.

Happy travels! - N