Bus Stop Classics:  Nagoya’s Yutorito Elevated Guided Busway – Go Up, Not Out

Long-time CC readers may remember our post on Pittsburgh’s “Skybus” – an early attempt at an elevated busway that, unfortunately, didn’t pan out.  Here in the Japanese city of Nagoya, a similar system has been in service for the past twenty-two years – and its future continues to look bright.

First, let’s take a look at why Nagoya chose this option.  Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is now one of the more successful alternatives to increasing both the speed and capacity of urban transit.  But it requires sufficient space for a dedicated bus through-way.  Japan’s constricted roads, with structures built right up to the curb in many places, makes it difficult to find space for these bus-only lanes.  So like with many other things in Japan when it comes to space and geography, if you can’t “go out, go up.”

The entire line consists of both elevated and regular street sections – the elevated section is 6.5 kilometers long and has nine stations.  The dark blue line on the map denotes the elevated portion.

The current bus used is a Hino “Blue Ribbon City” – one of the more popular urban transit models in Japan.  It uses a parallel hybrid powertrain with a four cylinder Hino diesel combined with a 90 kw electric motor. As it’s a low-floor model, batteries are stored on the roof.  Length is 10.5 meters and a width of 2.5.  Twenty-two passengers can be seated and another 53 standing.  This bus is manufactured jointly with Isuzu.  

Before entering the busway, guide wheels deploy just in front of the front wheels.  The driver only operates the throttle.  Buses can reach a top speed of 60 kph on the elevated portion.

Here’s the entry/exit point.

Next trip to Nagoya I’m planning on taking a ride.