TOKYO

You can find out all you need to know about Tokyo, Japan's megacity.

Despite being a giant metrolpolis, Tokyo is relatively free from many serious urban problems other large cities may face. Tokyo has some of the lowest crime rates and while living costs are high, most people live in middle class. As the city of Tokyo grows, it encounters many problems. Some of the problems in Tokyo currently are water and energy supply and pollution.

 

Water

As Tokyo expands, so the demand for water (industrial and domestic) increases greatly. Though at the current time, metrolpolis supply is secure for the foreseeable future.

 

Energy

Tokyo's energy supply is sufficient, both electricity and gas. Both of these energy sources are Japans main fuel are two oil crises. The nationwide electricity supply network has been developed to cope with and adjust to excess demand.

 

Air pollution

Air pollution is one of Tokyo's biggest environmental problems. The increase of automibles on roads and chemicals released into the air has increased the threat and damage to health. TO counter the threat, the Tokyoo Metropolitan Government (TMG) formulated the "TMG Master Plan for Environment". TMG continue to implement various emission control meausres to further improve air quality.

 

Heat Island Effect

The heat island effect is Tokyo's second environemtnal threat. The effect in urban areas is caused by large-scale energy consumption and global warming due to carbon dioxide in the air. The problem is also part of the "TMG Master Plan for Environment:. TMG has also intoduced for global warming the "CO2 Emission Reduction Program" and "Green Building Program" based on the ordinance on environmental preservation witht eh ainm to monitor energy conservation in office buildings and other large-scale business operations, and to prevent global warming in Tokyo. The rising heat in the city is contributed by absorbent surfaces, such as asphalt and concreate, tall buildings that block the breeze, heat-generated cars, etc. This phenomenon is known as the heat island effect becayse the temperature is higher in the city than the suburbs and the isothermal lines* create a shape like an island.

 

*isothermal lines are the lines on a map connecting points having the same temperature at a given tim eot on average over a given period.

 

TMG Master Plan for Environment

TMG Master Plan for Enviroment was formed in January 2002, based ont he policy "to make [a] healthy and safe environment and to build [a] sustainable society" in Tokyo.

 

Some of the strategic progammes under the plan include:

(a) Returning blue sky to Tokyo by implementing extensive air pollution preventive measures;

(b) Positively addressing the crises in Tokyo by preventing global warning; and

(c) Cooloing down Tokyo by implementing measures against the heat island effect.

 

Transport

Tokyo (over 13 million) us surrounded by many citries including Yokohama (population 3.3 million), Kawasaki (1.2 million) and Chiba (0.8 million). Many people from these areas commute to Tokyo for work or school, and this is causing for a single large area called the Tokyo Metropolitan Area to form. Railways have the largest share of passenger transportation in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area to form. Railways have the largest share of passenger transportation in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, making them extremely important to the area, which needs trains more than anywhere ekse in Japan. Of course, this comes with its own issues such as major conjestion, one of the greatest social problems.

 

During rush hours it is difficult to ride trains since the carts are usually holding twice as many passengers than designed for. Congestion is a result of the ever expansion towards urban areas and the heavy concentration of offices in central Tokyo. Demand for railways is faster than the reate they can be built. Capacity-increase projects are underway to build new railways and add new tracks parrallel to existing ones, but these projects always face shortages of financial resourses. The projects have also been hamperedlties in purchasing land required for new railways and related facilites. More projects and monitoring have been put in place to try and improve even further.

 

Congestion is also road transportations largest problems, a result of insufficient facilites to meet the growing demand. Urban expressways (toll roads) and roads and streets in central Tokyo are under a wide area traffice control to endure smooth flow. But arterial roads are almost always crowded, resulting in major econmic losses and environmental burdens. Construction is for more roads and streets are on the way, but these projects are delayed due to the troubles of purchasing right of way and opposition of residents. Parking is not as much of problem in Tokyo as in other places since most people use public tranport, and that all alrge buildings are required to have public parking in the,. A real problem is the short delivery stops caused by trucks on small streets and commercial areas, preventing the smooth flow of traffic on roads. Although all of this transport creates air pollution and excessive noise, having a great impact on the environment, countermeasures have been in place since the mid-1970s. Now nearly at the pollution souces and along roads, and lead pollution has been completely remidied. Despite this, air pollution and noise are still a problem. Yet, new projects are being introduced to plant more trees and bury electrical and telephone lines. Sorblems are structural change of cities, supply of transportation facilites, demand control of transportations and technical imporovements. Most tranformational problems are caused by the iurban structure. To stop heavy concentration of population and economic activites int he Tokyo Metropolitan Area, and to disperse them to remote areas.

 

Susan Sontag

500 Terry Francois St. San Francisco, CA 94158