Photo/Illutration A usually crowded area during lunch time at Tokyo's Shinjuku district is mostly deserted on April 17. (AP Photo)

Weekday foot traffic in office districts of Tokyo and Osaka between April 13 and 17 dropped 50-60 percent from early February, before the spread of the new coronavirus, according to a study based on GPS data.

But the figures are lower than the government’s April 11 call for at least a 70 percent reduction in commuter traffic in Tokyo and six other prefectures with urban centers.

In Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, and Urawa, Saitama Prefecture, the decrease was less than 30 percent.

The Asahi Shimbun tallied the estimated number of people in specific areas based on GPS data compiled by NTT Docomo Inc.

The study gauged pedestrian traffic in 20 districts of urban centers in Tokyo and the prefectures of Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa, Osaka, Hyogo and Fukuoka. These areas were placed under a state of emergency declared by the central government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus on April 7 ahead of the rest of the country. 

The rate of decline was high in Ginza and Marunouchi in central Tokyo at nearly 70 percent, where many large companies are based. A large number of such firms are believed to have put teleworking systems in place.

The rate of decrease in foot traffic was 56.3 percent in and near the Kasumigaseki district, where central government buildings are concentrated.

But the figures were less than 50 percent for the neighboring prefectures of Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa.

Related News