Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a daily column that runs on Page 1 of The Asahi Shimbun.
October 9, 2023 at 12:27 JST
In today’s world, terms like “kosupa” (cost performance) and “taipa” (time performance) pressure us to seek greater efficiency concerning value derived from money or time spent. For me, the words only intensify my longing for spontaneous journeys.
My ideal would be impromptu trips according to the spirit of “Tokubetsu Aho Ressha” (Special aho train), a book of travels written by Japanese author Hyakken Uchida (1889-1971). He wrote, “I have no particular errands, but I think I’ll take the train to Osaka.”
He staunchly believed that buying tickets in advance contradicts the essence of traveling. Admirable indeed. Once he has sorted out his finances, he spends nights poring over train timetables until he sets out on his unplanned adventure. I can almost picture his delighted expression.
I had heard that the circulation of printed timetables--like ones that sparked the imagination of the wordsmith--has dramatically decreased. But I was taken aback when I read a recent article stating that timetables are even disappearing from station platforms.
The reason given was to cut the cost of replacing them with every timetable revision.
It is true that you don’t need a timetable in urban areas where trains come frequently. It has become my custom to check train timetables online in advance whenever I go on a business trip.
Yet, knowing it might sound self-centered, as someone who identifies with the “spontaneous” crowd, I cannot help but feel a tinge of nostalgia and melancholy.
I once found myself standing on a small station platform during a trip to gather materials for an article. My imagination swelled when I saw a mostly blank timetable on the platform.
The station must have been busier in the past, I thought. There would probably have been people who could not meet the ones they expected and kept waiting.
A short poem about waiting for someone on a railway platform goes: “Roses on the platform of a station where the train stops sway suddenly as if waiting for someone.”
I might be overly sentimental. However, there are likely many who hold unforgettable memories associated with those tiny sets of numbers on timetables. This sense of nostalgia is not solely due to the sentimentality autumn brings.
--The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 8
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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
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Timetables are replaced by QR codes to access online schedules and other services on the subway platform at Hisaya-odori Station on the Sakura-dori Line in Nagoya. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
