Akashi Bridge

I am a little disappointed here as I had hoped to make a more comprehensive visit and report on Tuesday. As I said Satyaki and I visited the bridge on Sunday but the tour that takes you to the top of one of the towers is closed on Sundays, so I returned on Tuesday to complete the mission. It was a cloudy hazy day early and again the tower was closed, and my ability to understand the people at the desk kept me from completely understanding why.
Oh well.

The bridge is a very impressive structure and is one of the largest suspension bridges in existence. The towers are nearly 300 meters tall (nearly 1000 ft) and nearly 4km long (about 2.5 miles). It was built after a couple of ferries sank and 150 lives were lost, mostly schoolchildren I believe.
If you click on the bridge data picture it will expand and you can read the detail.

The toll to cross is about $50 (covers out and back).
The bridge had to be designed for an earthquake prone zone and was under construction when the 1995 Kobe earthquake occurred. They ultimately discovered that the towers had shifted during the quake and they had to start over with at least one of the structures.
The suspension cables are 1.1 meters thick (maybe 45 inches) and consist of multiple hexagonal strands that are designed to be fairly rigid in one direction and flexible in the other.

 

Cable cross section

You can feel the bridge move with traffic and this would be important in an earthquake. Equally the bridge has to be designed to sustain and survive high winds. So It is a complex structure that was expensive to build but manages the task while also being a beautiful (in my mind anyway) piece of architecture.

 

Osaka Bay from the bridge base

Looking down thru a glass floor to the water 100 meters below

I am on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train) on my way to Hiroshima. Satyaki showed me yesterday how to get to Shin Kobe station and navigate the subway, and I managed to do that and order a simple breakfast at the Shinkansen station, which is separate from the Japan Railways (JR) stations.

 

Nozomi Shinkansen train. Cruise 185 mph

The trains are very sleek and exude the feeling of speed even when they are in the station. The trains run about every 20 minutes and cruise at around 185 mph.

There are varying levels for train and the Nozumi is the fastest and is the equivalent of the Super Rapid on the regular JR line. There are a lot of tunnels and only two other stops between Kobe and Hiroshima. It takes about 90 minutes for the journey and is about $100 each way!

The train stops in the station for about 45 seconds, and there are barriers and gates that only open when the train is in the station, so you had better be ready when your stop comes up!. There are reserved seats and some cars with non-reserved seats where you take potluck.

The train is quiet and very smooth and there is plenty of legroom and a table. It is clean and well lit, and like everything I have seen so far is well maintained.

We have been traveling for about 30 minutes so far and it looks like we are approaching the first station Okayama.  It looks like not all the stations have full-length barriers and gates. There were none at Okayama.

Yesterday on the regular JR trains we watched the driver and the conductor. They are impeccably dressed and wear white gloves, and there is a procedure that looks like it is rigidly followed where the driver physically points to the signal ahead and when the train stops physically touches the light that indicates that the train is stopped and the brakes applied. 

 

Note the white gloves

They are also meticulous about the time and the conductor constantly checks it and the doors close on the second. I looked at the board that the driver has and it shows the arrival time and departure time for each station on the route and is to the second, even for local trains. S the train would arrive at Sumyoshi station at, say 10.22 and 20 seconds and depart at 10.22 and 45 seconds. The length of time is dependent on the average passenger volume and probably varies by the time also. To the average American we would maybe find this obsessive, but it works with Japanese culture and their expectations for efficiency.

 

The information board indicates the next two trains and when the train is approaching it starts to flash. You had better be ready as the stop is brief, even for the Nozomi!

While there is some evidence of farming the vast majority of the journey so far has been either tunnels, or an urban or industrial area.

The whole system must have been very expensive to build, and expensive to maintain, but the results are truly impressive. I can recall hearing about bullet trains 35 years ago. I am told that there are also many trains In China that are as fast or faster and impressive.

The thing that surprised me most is the number of trains. They look like they leave Hiroshima (most southerly point) for Tokyo, a terminal anyway but not the most northerly point, every 20 minutes or so. Maybe the other thing was that there are female train drivers, and in this male dominated society I was surprised. I saw shift change in Hiroshima and the new driver was a lady in her 30s. Of course I took a train with a male driver…much safer!! JUST KIDDING.

Random photos and situations in Japan

Something a little different today.
I have collected a variety of images to show some similarities and some differences between life in Japan and elsewhere.
I hope you enjoy them. Some are classic

 

Call before you dig. Could work anywhere.

Bicycles at the train station. Hundreds of them. Most are not locked or chained.

 

You might have to lock this one up. Gas mileage is appalling.

Plug in electric assist bicycle with kid carrier.

Check out the boys school uniforms especially the hats!.

Looks like kids routinely ride the train and tram unsupervised at very young ages.

More kids with strange hats on their way home. This time in Kyoto.

The backpack is nearly as big as the kid. I understand they cost around $500!!

Japanese toilet (Western style) with soft heated seat, vent fan and bidet feature with adjustable pressure and heat!

Operator controls for said seat.

Seat on sale in a store for approx $350. Reduced from $750. Crappy market I suppose.

Note the store name. "Love Girls Market"

 

Probably what you buy at the Love Girls Market.

Lots of trashy dressing particularly girls. Presumably a chance to rebel in a very structured society.

Cheap hotel between 10pm and 11 am. Just about $50.

Understandable even for married couples where you live with the kids even when they are adults, and the walls or dividerrs are made of paper. Bet the kids will pay the $50 sometimes just so they do not have to listen. LOL

This guy is in a world of hurt. Parked illegally outside the Bullet Train station. It was there for at least 30 min with three cops taking pictures and measurements.

Security risk I am sure.

This house can only be 3 meters wide at this end judging by the relative width of the SUV. Good news is that it gets wider at the other end.

Rhino looks from the bridge at the A Bomb Memorial in Hiroshima. Seperate post about that trip but it was time Rhino made an appearance.

Nissan GTR for my son Al.