Saito san for president of JR 👏

Hello, just a Tetsu-otaku randomly finding this video here! A gripe I have with this video is how it's very vague on which JR to focus on, as you're talking as if "Japan Railways" is one single company that does every JR service from Hokkaido to Kyushu. While in reality, "JR" is a really broad term used by SEVEN (Hokkaido, East, Central, West, Shikoku, Kyushu, FREIGHT, and technically Sofbank too but they changed their name so ig that doesn't really count) different companies since the JR Group IS a fragmentation of the original JNR (The Japan National Railway) after it got privatized in 1987. Throughout the entire 15 minutes of this video I see that it tends to jump from one line by a different company to another (Yamanote Line's JR East, Chuo Shinkansen of JR Central). By lumping them all together, this essentially treats them the same like it's JNR, and so with the broad term you use, it really felt unspecific and potentially misinforming for those who aren't really familiar with the JR Group as a whole. I'd love to see if you zoomed in more and propose a solution for each JR Group companies' own problems though! Would definitely be more insightful than only looking at a large scale by lumping different entities together... Each company all has their own struggle here and there (Rationalization of JR Hokkaido for example, or just JR Central's Chuo Shinkansen issue), and it's definitely NOT something that you can focus on when you're covering over 7 different companies, else you should call this video "The Downfall of Japan's National Railways" instead lmao. Also a little nitpick but "Tetsu-Otaku" is a shorthanded term for "Tetsudou-Otaku", and not how it's 'Officially' called. Sorry for the very long comment, just a small criticism I'd like to point out hahaha.

I do have to disagree about selling maglev abroad not working. There are European countries with fantastic high speed rail networks and are even connected with Eurostar. However the lines are mostly built to connect places within their own countries, often to the capital, having to travel a longer distance to go somewhere closer. Also many of the capitals aren't connected all that well to each other. This means that some new lines will have to be built in the future and there will be demand for maglev, especially as EU countries are trying to cut down on short flights.

There is a high speed rail project stuck in the planning stage here in Texas. They're partnering with JR East. Seeing that Texas is a worker-hostile state, i wonder if that JV will encounter similar problems.

i disagree w most of these 1. dynamic pricing is less just convenient for ppl bc they will have to constantly check prices (convenience= #1 in japan). I think its great in theory until you consider Japanese culture more. (convenience, reluctance for change) 2. I agree but they would have to make sure the automated trains can properly stop in case of an obstruction at a level rail crossing (they're everywhere in japan) and esp with the aging population that could get stuck in the tracks crossing the tracks. 3. agreed, do you know which countries already do this already? 4. japan is a huge rich economy with enough money for the project. also, it's world famous for its trains and innovative train technology, abandoning the maglev project would not look good for japan's image. connecting Tokyo-Osaka in less than half the time it currently takes allows super commuters to potentially live in one metro area and work in the other, and connecting the 2 largest cities in japan is pretty important if you think about it. Nice video, I enjoyed watching nonetheless!

Hey CEO, you didn't take the pay cuts seiously enough. Go on strike for a month, JR workers; you have nothing to lose but your chains!

I have to laugh at these proposals like dynamic pricing. Ask any Brit in the UK or even many European train riders how dynamic pricing has been abused by rail operators, making train travel unaffordable. Also, low prices do not necessarily make for better train travel. Look at Germany that struggles with meeting operating costs or the lack of quality you see from low cost carriers like Flixtrain. The point is that dynamic pricing is not a solution if it is poorly implemented with no caps on what a rail carrier can charge for a train ride.

I think we should always strive towards newer technologies like Maglev, because of the potential revolution(s) it will spur. While 4x the cost for almost 2x the [time] reduction is still a hurdle, it can be mitigated over time, though maybe not by a large amount. The wheel will be further reinvented. Not only that, but new tech shouldnt be ousted just because it is [economically] unfeasible. We'll never get to Fusion energy, the stars, or whatever else just because it's less economically viable than "traditional" methods.

Well done, with a good combination of good sense and good humor. Could the maglev line be adapted to be a 2nd high speed rail route between the main cities, to relieve the existing route?

Dynamic price make things a lot less spontaneous, at least on the railways. Tickets in many European countries have to be ordered months in advance to get decent price. As the day of travel approaches the price tends to go up a lot (yes even for middle of the day tickets) it makes planning and booking miserable. At the end of the day the European way of ticketing forces people who buy tickets later to subsidize the cost of people who buy tickets at the earliest possible moment. Good luck finding that 35 euro fare anytime soon between Amsterdam and Paris that Eurostar proudly advertises on their website.

Controversial opinions, liked the video already for that. I can very much get on board with the dynamic pricing, they tried to introduce it here in The Netherlands too but the public pushback was too big! I suggest it doesn't work like the airline systems where prices can rise and lower drastically, but more like smaller prices increases and discounts up to like 25% to make sure it still stays fair and affordable and it still incentivises a spread of rush hour. Because let's be honest, the main costs of busy systems like Japan and The Netherlands are all for the like 3 hours of rush hour each day. Automation of lines definitely has to start in the smaller closed off systems that aren't at the centre of the network to test how it goes but it should happen! I don't agree with cancelling chuo shinkansen because costs can be driven down significantly over time, if you look back at the development of the shinkansen the project might not have made the most sense for the time financially and look how much of a success it has become. If we want to know if maglev is viable for the future Japan is the country that could be able to do it and we can't stifle innovation especially because the risk is low.

I think the dynamic prices could atchally work, just have an off and on period during the day. Then make it cheaper in the middle of the week compaired to friday to Monday.

Hi, I like the enthusiasm but I don't think we would agree on anything LOL Proposal 1: One thing I dislike about "modern" railways is having prices dynamic like airplanes. So, NO PLEASE, keep prices fixed regardless on when you buy them. A train is a train, not an airplane. If you want to add some extra flexibility, you can put a lower price for trips outside of rush hours (off-peak times), but again, it must be a fixed percentage and should not change depending on when you book it or not. I think that one of the great benefits of trains is that you can go in any train you like, whenever you want and not having people to force their schedule predicting when they will catch their train back home. Proposal 2: Automating train is not that easy. Well, Yamanote Line has started automating trains with ATO (but not ATP)...which means you still need a supervisor. There are too many factors to take into consideration to fully automate a train. The lines you have mentioned are basically isolated systems and all stations are closed boxes, so there is no interference at all. You are asking to work on the stations and infrastructure on a level that would destroy any company. Furthermore, many people (like myself) prefer working with machines, time etc instead of people. I would find more exciting measuring the time a train stays in a station than having to deal with customers. I agree with the tickets on the phone though. Proposal 3: Not too bad but no, it won't solve any actual issue. Proposal 4: You are crazy. LOL 80 million dollars is not much if you consider it takes decades to build it. I agree that more money could be invested in minor routes but the main problems of the minor routes is that the timetables are absolutely crap and so not many people use trains in those specific lines (see JR Hokkaido). To solve the issue, they could do as proposed in one of the NHK International episodes, where they show what it has been done with the Kyoto-Tango Railway - repetitive and symmetric timetables, dividing infrastructure and rolling stock owners etc... The maglev is not only for export but also for internal economic growth - you should visit the museum. Furthermore, the development of the Maglev is not actually stopping the extension and construction on other very needed Shinkansen line, so scrapping the Maglev would be probably the dumbest idea ever. That said, I appreciate your great enthusiasm but you would need to understand railways more before becoming CEO!

There is not a singular JR company, rather multiple spanning throughout the country.

I don't get the connection between Maglev and environmental sustainability. Isn't the Maglev purely electric, with no oil or gasoline required for its operation?

how about replacing diesel trains with dual modes?

Sounds like NYC and USA well damn Japan you managed to do worse impressive

1:48 Didin't expect Devendra Fadnavis there! I think Japan should continue its Maglev project. India, China will definitely buy the technology and even the US might buy it simply due to national prestige. Ofc the costs are like 5x the bullet train lines, so only a few lines would be ever built in the entire world (unless somehow tunneling costs come down). Success of this project could revitalize the Japanese manufacturing economy in the short term. Also, the benefits of de-congesting Tokyo could be massive considering its the most dense urbanized place on earth.

Well done CEO 😀👍 Can you make the Rail Pass cheaper now ? ☺ I hope Japan Railways see this video and implement change (They wont, but it's nice to dream) As someone who did 4300 kilometers in 21 days in Japan last year, I was astounded you couldn't see where the trains were at any one time online and also book tickets online. I think you can if you buy the Rail Pass directly from JR but not if you are an outside purchaser.

Do u live in japan?

Isn't the maglev funded mostly with interest-free loans from government? If so, it would be a no-brainer for JR.

$80B is enough to fund both Nishi Kyushu and Hokkaido Shinkansens

At this point even Wendy's implementing surge pricing, but as always Japan is too slow on adapting to the new technologies even though they have ability

JR a Japanese version of 'Amtrak'

Dynamic pricing eventually devolves to price gauging. It NEVER works in the favor of a traveler, JR will continue to have Shinkansen that travel empty precisely because there is never enough time for the Japanese to go on vacation.

4. Ditch the Maglev - Isn't there a major island that doesn't even have shinkansen yet - Shikoku I think. You would think they would get this island lines so there could be a high-speed railway loop.

The Shikoku Shinkansen should be an extension of the Chou (maglev) Shinkansen

What about Nintendo and other "humane" Japanese companies? I heard Nintendo won't let its employees use the toilet. 🤢🤮

Another criticism of this video is the presenters shortsighted view on Maglev. Despite what this backwards-thinking presenter believes, Maglev must be the future of rail travel. This world is dying on its insane mania for environmentally unsustainable travel, like what we have seen with the explosion of cheap air travel and insanity of even more building car-centric road building, like that of the U.S, india and even the Benelux in Western Europe. Maglev will provide a strong incentive to get more people and even freight traffic to choose rail verses air or road travel, because of one major factor - speed and efficiency.

The purpose of automation is to reduce manpower needed and thus costs. Thats by reducing the amount of people employed by automating away their jobs. This is efficient, but please don’t paint it as "so they can fill other roles" its simply disingenuous.

Very American

Talking about downfall when they have the best trains in the world.hah edit: OK I guess I was a bit quick. This is about the work culture internally.' Also dynamic travel prices like the airlines suck backside.

Great solutions but it's incredibly appalling to me that you made a YT channel discussing Japanese society and its issues while you didn;t understand the fundamental things of the Japanese people and its culture “If you can fill or do your taxes online, how hard can it be to book tickets online?” A great ignorant way of thinking that is highly unexpected lol. By logic that does make sense but the issue is Japanese people still do the majority of their life aspects the old-school way, including filing their taxes. So how can the average Japanese person understand the basic things of buying train tickets online if they never did anything online lol? Also this kind of system of booking train tickets online brings more harm than good as this will confuse tourists who are now the biggest customer base for JR Group as booking tickets online, even on smaller commuter trains would just confuse them. “Pegged train tickets to the airline ticket prices so that it can bring a lot of profit for train companies” Yes, that could work. Why not? It works wonders in the UK and rest of Europe right now with their unaffordable ticket prices, constant net losses for rail services, and that people are being pushed into planes and cars as it reduces competitiveness in the rail sector with plane ticket from Manchester to Canary Islands is way cheaper than a train ticket from Manchester to Liverpool lol. Really a great way for JR to finally achieve profitability And where is your solution for handling JRs seniority, toxic work culture, lack of innovation and stagnant wage ones?? The issues that the company faces the most in 20 straight years now, you said at the beginning of the video, resulted in its top officials resigning. No solution on that? Sad to say that this is the worst video on your channel ever