I’m finally getting down to writing this.
Now, Singapore’s transportation works the exact opposite from Japan’s. Back home, we board the bus from the front and alight from the back. We pay immediately after we board and if you’ve got no idea how much you’ve got to pay, you ask the driver.
In Japan, you board from the back of the bus and alight from the front. Also, you pay only when you are about to alight. I didn’t get the chance to snap a picture at the back of the bus without looking like a terrorist, so I didn’t take it. But it’s easy to understand with a few sentences. Pictures will come later, so please be patient. If you’ve got the contact card, you insert it when you board the bus at the back and insert again when you alight at the front. If you’ve got the contactless card, it works the same. Scan it when you board at the back and scan again when you alight at the front. It’s obvious where to insert the card and where to scan. The problem comes when you’ve got no cards and are gonna pay by cash.
When you board the bus, there is this machine with a tiny piece of paper sticking out of it. Grab that! The ticket should look something like this.
Bus ticket
The random-looking black squares are actually the bar code and the number on it is very important but I’ll talk about it again later. And since there is a bar code, it is only logical that you do not tear or crumple it although it really is kinda flimsy and the size makes you want to fold it. But don’t! The top left says so. おりまげないでください。
Front of the bus
You see the screen right at the top with a lot of numbers? That’s when the number on your ticket comes into play. My ticket was number 17, which means I boarded at bus stop number 17. So I just have to look at the price at square number 17 to know how much I have to pay at the stop I decide to alight at.
A closer look
The price at square 17 says ¥230 so that’s the price I would have to pay if I were to alight at the next stop. Yes, bus rides in Japan are very expensive especially in the countryside. I once spent over $20 on a one-way bus ride in Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture. The bus I take to a particular school now costs me over $5 one-way.
Now, where do you pay?
Pardon the mess of arrows but I’m doing my best to write this entry with a lazy attitude.
Monster machine
The black numbers are the payment places. Arrow #1 is where you insert your contact card. Arrow #2 is where you scan your contactless card. Arrow #3 is where you throw your money in together with the bus ticket. Although it looks like a trash eating machine, the bar code will actually be scanned and the amount you pay will also be calculated and reflected on the small screen beside it. You can throw notes and coins in it. No change will be given so pay exact!
But I don’t know how much to pay at first, how would I know how much coin to have on me? Good question. That’s where the arrows with the white numbers come in. Those are where you can get small change but only up to a ¥1,000 note. If you’ve got a ¥5,000 or worse ¥10,000 note, try your luck changing with the bus driver into thousands. I did that once though.
Arrow #4 is where you insert your ¥1,000 note to get a ¥500 coin and five ¥100 coins. If you need smaller ones, insert your coin into the slot at Arrow #5. Inserting a ¥500 coin would give you five ¥100 coins. And inserting a ¥100 coin would give you a ¥50 coin and five ¥10 coins. Collect your change at Arrow #6.
Now, you should get your change way before the stop you’re going to alight at, in order to not hold up the alighting queue. At the same time, you should not stand while the bus is in motion. So get your change when the bus is at a red light or when it stops at any of the stops.
So with that, I hope taking a bus in Japan is now less terrifying.
Hi, thank you for writing this article. It is very informative and useful.
Thank you for your comment! ^^
Awesome, great tips!
Mmm, may I ask, what is a contact card?
Hi Jessie,
I’m guessing you’re from Singapore too?
The EZLink is a contactless card, where the card doesn’t have to come into contact with the machine to perform transactions.
Before the EZLink, we had the Transitlink card, where you have to insert into the machine for transaction to take place. That’s a contact card.
Ooh I see..Thanks for the reply. But no, I’m not from Singapore, but Malaysia. I will be visiting Osaka & Kyoto in another 2 weeks. One look at their public transportation map, I felt dizzy. In the end, I might take cab instead of bus.
One more question. ^_^
Ermm, does the bus ticket come out automatically from the machine? Or do I have to press on anything to take it?
Thank you in advance!
I wouldn’t suggest you take a cab because it’s really expensive but you probably already worked out the math.
Anyway, the ticket sticks out of the machine automatically and you can just grab it.
Thank you for your information. I’ve been “studying” the map of Kyoto and their public transportation system…haha, and finally got a hold of it (I hope!).. Will be travelling around using the subway and city bus, instead of taking a cab.
No problem.
A 1-day pass for the buses in Kyoto is only 500 yen, so it’s better in some sense.
Although if you take too far out like into Arashiyama, you’ve gotta pay cash
And waiting for it is another story. Hah! Have fun!
silly question
if i use an all day pass
do i need to scan it/insert it to the machine?
or just show it to the driver?
thanks
Hi b,
If I didn’t remember it wrong, you have to insert it into the machine as well (I believe they are still using contact card for day passes). There are also times when the driver would just ask you to show them but these are exceptional cases.
Thanks, I just took a bus for the first time – I usually walk. I was so confused – I thought I had paid already, turns out I had just put the money in the change machine. So when my stop came I just ran off – the driver beeped at me, I got back on like “what??” and he pointing at the number. I figured I had to pay twice?? Once when I got on once getting off? Then he left the door open while I tried to figure out my money [I just got to Japan 2 days ago and don’t really speak the lang] and it’s freezing outside and i’m sure everyone is pissed at me. Anyway, total stupid foreigner event. Now I feel like a moron. Live you learn I guess. Still feel like a moron.
Hi Kagoshima,
That would come down as one of the interesting stories you have to tell ^^
I doubt you have to pay twice but even after having taken buses a number of times the past 4 years, I’m sure there are still systems I’m not familiar with. Some buses are at a fixed rate, so you pay when you board the bus since the price doesn’t change wherever you alight. Some require you to pay when you alight, and if you board at the first couple of stops, you board from the back and no ticket is required, but boarding anywhere else requires you to board from the front and get a ticket. Some even require you to purchase the ticket before you board the bus. I still get nervous when I take buses at a new place. Have fun!
Hello,
I’m going to Northern Tohoku soon and planning to take public transport, including bus, to get around. Have never taken a bus in Japan before, so I have a couple of qns:
– Do we need to flag the bus when we see it arriving or the driver will just stop when he sees someone at the bus stop?
– Is there a display board in the bus showing the name (Japanese and/or English) of the next stop? I am afraid that I would miss out on the verbal announcement as I’m not good in Japanese!
– Do you also know if the buses in the region I’m going works the same way as you said here?
– L
Hi L,
– No, you do need have to flag the bus. It will stop if the driver sees you standing there.
– Yes, there are display boards for the buses I’ve taken but I do not rule out the possibility that there could be some without.
– Unfortunately, even within Tokyo, different cities have their buses work differently. With some, you board from the front and some from the back. For some, you pay a fix fee while others charge a variable fee based on distance. So I can’t say for sure the bus systems in Tohoku are the same.
Hi, thanks for this article, it really helped a lot! I’ll be going Japan again for the second time (only took trains on my 1st trip) and decided to use the buses this time round. In your recent reply you mentioned that some buses in Tokyo will require you to board at the front, and some at the back? Is there any indication where should you board from, or do you just make a wild guess and risk having an embarrassing moment if you board wrongly? ^^; I’ll be travelling within Tokyo, Yokohama & Chiba. Thank you!
the driver will usually stop the entrance right in front of you. unlike the random and chaotic bus stops in sg, there usually aren’t many people at each bus stop and people mostly queue up properly even before the buses arrive, so if you’re supposed to board from the back, the driver will more often than not stop the back door right in front of you.
Oh okay thank you!
Can we buy tickets from japan itself not through online reservations?
Hi Clifford,
I didn’t know you can buy tickets through online reservations though, so yes, you can buy in Japan.
Hi, we’ll be going to hokkaido in mid june, how to know the right number to get on? Planning to go to other part of tourist area.
Hi Swei,
Google Maps is actually very updated on this. Search a source and destination on the map and select bus as the transport, it will show you the possible buses you can take. Alternatively, at bus terminals, there are usually panels that list the stops the buses will pass. Portions of it will also be written on the digital panels on buses, but Maps is probably the more convenient option. I’ve never tried it for Hokkaido, but let me know how it goes.
Just to clarify, if I have an IC card, do I take a ticket or not?
Nope, if you have an IC card, you just have to tap.
No tickets needed.