JR East to Raise Prices Starting March 2026
Japan has a great public transportation system. I don’t drive here, so I often ride the trains and am very satisfied. With the cost of so many things getting more expensive, I wasn’t surprised to read that JR East will be increasing its fares beginning March 2026. This is the first price increase since it started in 1987, not including consumption tax increases by the government.
I live in an area covered by JR Central, but traveling to Tokyo or northern Honshu means JR East.
The Executive Vice President announced the company must spend effort and money on safe railway operations. The estimated annual increase of 88.1 billion yen will be used for equipment and repairs, as well as to offset rising operational costs and to raise wages for staff.
On average, fares will rise by 7.1%. IC card holders will have slightly lower rates compared to paper ticket holders. I expect the other train companies will also be raising fares soon.
Have you ever ridden trains in Japan? How do you feel about the price increases?
3 comments:
Although fares are high, you get value for your money, so I have no complaints. Safety, cleanliness, punctuality, correct information and good service are worth a lot.
Japan is a country battling with nature. Tunnels and bridges need to be built to deal with the topography, so construction costs for a train like the Shinkansen are formidable. Volcanic eruptions, landslides, typhoons, tsunamis and earthquakes form other natural obstacles, but the trains keep running.
All in all, you really get a lot for the cost of a ticket!
Riding the trains in Japan is one of my great memories. I was always impressed with how clean, quiet, fast and not exactly cheap but definitely reasonable they were. I haven't been since COVID but if they've been charging the same prices this whole time it seems fair enough to raise them.
If they really never increased prices since the 80s, that's a steal! Train prices increase almost every year here, and the quality of train services in Japan is so much higher.
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