Ryan Ginstrom wrote:
> <trimmage on general principle>
> "John W." <worthj1970@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:4165F558.7020906@yahoo.com...
>> I don't know if I've ever seen anything about the timeliness of
>> trains in that era, from anywhere. Maybe it wasn't such an issue
>> then. I've heard the German trains (or maybe Swiss) are best for
>> being on time.
>
> The punctuality of Japanese trains is awesome. Back when I lived in
> the real Japan, I would ride in the (JR) train with my son at the
> very front (with the otakus and other son-accompanied dads) so we
> could watch the drivers.
>
> They have a table by their console, with a list of markers, and times
> in 15-second intervals. As the drivers pass each marker, they point
> to it with one hand and put their finger on the corresponding time
> with the other. Invariably, the times are correct to the second.
>
> A lot of new visitors are amazed when station employees give them
> directions for the train, saying "go to that platform and get on the
> train that arrives at 2:37." The really amazing thing is that it
> works.
>
> Not sure about BART, but the cars for Caltrain are made by a Japanese
> company. Doesn't seem to help them run on time, although they seemed
> to be within about 15 minutes -- and never left a station early.

Besides punctuality, my biggest complaint is they can't keep any machinery
working at all. Escalators are out of service half the time, the ticket
machines don't work half the time (not to mention the flimsy paper tickets
that get eaten), the ticket hanbaiki are out of service half the time, and
the BART trains themselves are going out of service all the time too. (All
the time meaning "relative to Japanese trains and machinery" of course.)

Jeff