Opening Date Set For New Tokyo Subway Line

[Mulboyne]

Buy yourself a Fukutoshin line "scale shorty train model".

[Mulboyne]

Meiji Jingumae Station on the Tokyo Metro subway line is only a few metres away from JR Harajuku Station. The subway operator says that it will begin announcing "Harajuku" as trains pull in to Fukutoshin line stop. There are precedents for announcements to include an alternative name to the official station name but, usually, this is a commercial arrangement with major stores or an operator like Tsukiji market. Tokyo Metro's decision to announce "Harajuku" is slightly different. The Fukutoshin Line competes with the Yamanote line and the company hopes that people will come to associate their stop with Harajuku and use their service instead of the JR line.

[omae mona]

Meiji Jingumae Station on the Tokyo Metro subway line is only a few metres away from JR Harajuku Station. The subway operator says that it will begin announcing "Harajuku" as trains pull in to Fukutoshin line stop. There are precedents for announcements to include an alternative name to the official station name but, usually, this is a commercial arrangement with major stores or an operator like Tsukiji market. Tokyo Metro's decision to announce "Harajuku" is slightly different. The Fukutoshin Line competes with the Yamanote line and the company hopes that people will come to associate their stop with Harajuku and use their service instead of the JR line.

I can see the reason. I would guess that a lot of tourists heading to Harajuku (and there are a lot of them) assume they have to go to the station called Harajuku. And in the course of doing so they may go on a fairly roundabout route only to find themselves right next to a station (Meiji-jingumae) which they could have gotten to much more quickly.

Not sure how long it has been this way, but it looks like the subway maps have already been updated to show the two stations as if they are connected.

[Christoff]

[Mulboyne]

...The subway operator says that it will begin announcing "Harajuku" as trains pull in to Fukutoshin line stop...

It will also be on the signs:

[omae mona]

I love the use of quotation marks!

[FG Lurker]

[IkemenTommy]