On November 27th, JR East Chiba Branch, in conjunction with its STATION WORK organization, turned the Narita Express into telework offices. This is being done to mitigate the financial losses from decreased ridership of the airport-bound train line due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The overall goal is to have these train car offices available at the following stations: Chiba, Makuhari-Hongo, Funabashi, Nishi-Funabashi, Kaihin-Makuhari, and Shin-Urayasu. However, the trial run will only take place at Ryogoku for now, with the usage fee being 100 yen/15 minutes, excluding tax.
The offices will be available from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Interested parties can reserve a spot at the STATION WORK website, though spots may be limited at this point.
This is considered to be a creative expansion of the aforementioned STATION WORK initiative, which provides office booths (aka STATION BOOTHS) for commuters. According to the website, the main features of STATION WORK booths are:
- State-of-the-art amenities such as WiFi, a monitor, air-conditioning, and electrical outlets;
- Soundproofing which is good for conversations via telephone; and
- A private place to handle business matters while waiting for the train.
JR East originally rolled out the STATION BOOTHs on August 1, 2019, and originally installed at Tokyo, Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, and Tachikawa Stations. Though it was originally designed with office workers in mind, students have used it for some studying and shut-eye as well.
Since then, the capsule booths have expanded to multiple stations in Kanto. Using actual train cars seemed like the most logical next step. Of course, the future of this telework-on-a-train program will depend on the demonstration’s success.
The move by JR East comes as Japan becomes accustomed to remote work. While some companies have experimented with alternative work arrangements in Japan, many workers remained office-bound five (or more) days a week. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, more companies are offering telework options.
While the novelty of telework on a train is undeniable, this was not done on a whim. JR East has experienced financial losses due to decreased ridership. Not surprisingly, the Chiba area has been affected the most, not just because of the decline in traffic to Narita International Airport, but also to Tokyo Disney Resort in Maihama.
To be fair, the article linked above was from early March of this year, during the first wave of COVID-19. Seeing as how Disney Resort is open at the time of writing, the situation may have changed. However, the connection between business and public transportation is strong not only in Japan but all over the world. Creatively-planned events such as the Narita Express demonstration will likely be necessary even after the pandemic ends.
