'Do It Somewhere Else': Tokyo Metro Turns Etiquette into Fun Art
Its manners awareness campaign began back in September 1974 and has been going strong for over 50 years. Every year, a new theme is chosen, and a fresh poster is released each month to match it.
So why highlight Tokyo Metro among all the railway companies in the Kanto region? For one, it's a system that many Tokyoites rely on every day. More importantly, its poster designs are especially creative and engaging.
Before being privatized in 2004, Tokyo Metro was known as the Teito Rapid Transit Authority (or Eidan Subway). Since then, it has continued to produce eye-catching, thought-provoking poster campaigns.
Two standout examples are the "Let's Do It Somewhere Else" series from 2008 and the "Kanji" series from 2016. They were both designed to grab the attention of even the busiest commuters.
Launched in April 2008, this lighthearted campaign highlights everyday behaviors that may seem harmless but can be inconsiderate in public spaces, such as talking loudly on the phone or putting on makeup in a crowded train. The posters gently encourage passengers to reflect on whether they might be bothering others without realizing it.
Visitors from overseas might find some of the posters unusual, especially if the behavior depicted isn't considered a problem in their own countries. Still, the creativity and humor behind the campaign are hard not to appreciate.
A fan favorite is "Do It at the Beach," which shows a man getting caught in the closing train doors as he tries to rush onboard. The way he's stuck makes it look like he's swimming. "Please refrain from putting on make-up in the train." (Courtesy of Metro Cultural Foundation)
The series became hugely popular. According to Tokyo Metro PR representative Masaki Ishii: "We received a ton of requests from publishers and schools asking to use the posters for educational purposes."
The campaign continued for several years. Other examples include "Let's Do It at Home" (November 2009), which shows a woman applying makeup on the train.
Positive behavior was also encouraged through the "Let's Do It Again" series. A 2010 poster, for instance, shows someone offering their seat, promoting kindness and empathy. "Please offer your seat to those in need." (Courtesy of Metro Cultural Foundation)
Launched in 2016, this series features a single kanji character each month to promote a specific manners message. The tagline reads, "Are your manners in good shape?" The literal translation of the Japanese tagline is "Your manners — do they feel right?" The word "kanji" also means "feeling," creating a clever double meaning. "Please take care your wet umbrella is not bothersome to others." (Courtesy of Metro Cultural Foundation)
The bold, simple characters are easy to spot from a distance. They often spark curiosity, even from international visitors. Some featured kanji include: April: 扉 (door)
May: 音 (sound)
June: 滴 (drip)
July: 列 (line)
August: 荷 (baggage)
September: 見 (look)
October: 声 (voice)
November: 滞 (block)
December: 走 (run)
January (2017): 優 (kindness)
February: 座 (sit)
March: 運 (transport)
The messages are simple, impactful, and often bring a smile during stressful commutes. "Please be considerate of others when traveling with bulky baggage." (Courtesy of Metro Cultural Foundation)
These posters are produced by the Metro Cultural Foundation, a public-interest group affiliated with Tokyo Metro. Here are some of the talented artists behind the campaigns: Bunpei Yorifuji – Created the "Please Do It Somewhere Else" series. He's an award-winning designer recognized with the Tokyo Art Director's Club Prize (2005) and the Kodansha Book Design Award (2008).
Yu Nagaba (aka Kaeru-sensei) — Designed the "Kanji" series.
Yu Oosawa — Illustrated the 2023 "Thank You for Your Good Manners" campaign.
Peko Asano — Worked on the 2024 series, "Let's All Be Kind to Everyone." He also did illustrations for the 2021 film We Made a Beautiful Bouquet.
Ayaki Obata — Created the 2025 series, "Good Manners Are Appreciated Anytime by Everyone." Obata is also known for work in manga and promotional comics.
Tokyo Metro isn't the only railway company using creativity to promote better behavior.
The Tsukuba Express, which runs between Tsukuba (Ibaraki) and Akihabara (Tokyo), launched a fun series of campaigns starting in 2018. These include: "Friendly Vegetables" and "Annoying Fruits"
"Insect Encyclopedia of Bad Behavior" (2020)
"Good Bug Guide" Forward-Going White Butterflies wearing masks in a poster created during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Courtesy of Metropolitan Intercity Railway Company)
One poster from the "Good Bug Guide," featuring Susumon Shirocho (the Forward-Going White Butterfly), even comes with a thoughtful note:
"This character is shown wearing a mask because the poster was made during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are no longer asking passengers to wear masks."
It's a small detail, but it shows how much care and thought go into each campaign.
( Read the article in Japanese . )
Author: Ryuichi Tadokoro, The Sankei Shimbun
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Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors 'I was completely restricting my kitchens without sakes,' he said. Another French giant, Richard Geoffroy, was chef de cave at Dom Pérignon for 28 years, reviving the brand to its iconic status during his tenure. But in 2 019, he made a dramatic pivot and opened IWA 5, a premium sake brewery in Japan. With such vaunted non-Japanese palates besotted with sake, you'd think a stampede of the curious would have followed. Well, no stampede, but there's definitely trotting. 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'It was like getting the keys to Home Depot and not just working with a table saw and router,' he said. 'And sake is umami in a glass with 20 times more than in wine. It loves food. It amplifies flavour. Sake makes food shine. Try it with pizza. They're umami bombs.' Tetsu chef-owner Satoshi Makise invited Geoffroy be cause IWA 5 is his favourite sake. 'I feel his style is similar to mine. It's still traditional but innovative. I love that. He creates different styles of sake using white wi ne making t echnology and ages it for different flavours. He's created a sake with an aftertaste (lingering finish), not just an initial flavo ur, an d it can pair with any cuisine.' Stay on top of the latest real estate news and home design trends. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Makise created a menu to sync with IWA 5's terroir, the coastal Toyama prefecture known for exceptional seafood. Geoff roy blends three rices and five yeast strains for his sakes, and two of the yeasts are traditionally used in winemaking. The most startling sake dinner, however, was at The Victor, a steak house, a daring move as I'll bet 99 per cent of diners feel steaks are wedded to bold red wines. Steak, you say? I want tannins! Patrick Ellis, one of about a dozen non-Japanese 'sake samurais' in the world, was there to prove us wrong. Ellis dislikes saying 'sake pairing' because, well, frankly, sake is kind of a floozy — it'll go with anything and isn't too fussy about what. Sake samurai Patrick Ellis at The Victor restaurant. Photo by Mia Stainsby In more professional speak, Ellis s ays, 'It do esn't have many restrictions. It doesn't have the acidit y of wine, but what it does have is 20 to 25 times more umami than wine, and about 80 per cent of our taste r eceptors are for umami. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Umami is based on glutamate amino acids and it's what starts you salivating,' he says. 'It doesn't fight with food, as wine can.' Ellis adds that beef contains inosinate (formed when muscle tissue breaks down) and when glutamate and inosinate are consumed together, it's pure umami synergy. 'The perceived umami increases by up to 10 times than when consumed on their own,' Ellis says. At The Victor dinner, Dassai Junmai Dai Ginjo sake and Wagyu flatiron steak were very civil to one another, and might I say, they liked each other very much. Action! Kiss camera! The Victor is actually the perfect restaurant to test the sake-goes-with-anything claim because there's sushi and sashimi for a classic pairing and steaks to test out the synergy. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Steak dish at The Victor, paired with sake. Photo by Mia Stainsby Fanny Bay Oyster Bar is another non-Japanese restaurant that 'got' sake. Owner Malindi Taylor says it's a no-brainer. 'Oysters and sake are a natural pairing, complementing each other due to both being rich in natural umami flavours,' says Taylor. 'We've had sake on our menu for the last seven years. Guests love seeing it on our Happy Hour menu as it's not something you see everywhere.' At Michelin-recommended Yuwa Japanese restaurant, co-own er and sake sommelier Iori Kataoka feels sake is finally getting its due. 'We can't ignore sake anymore,' she says. Not like when she opened a first restaurant in the early 1990s, and all she could get was boxed sake. 'It was on top of a machine and only hot sake would come out,' she says. 'There were only two sake agents and now there are over 16, representing over 300 kinds of sakes.' And by the way, warm brews are no longer the sign o f loser sakes. Top brewmasters recommend heating to reveal, not mask, properties in certain sakes. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Yuwa recently held a special event dinner with six Japanese sake makers and a barley shochu maker. 'Six different ideas for making sake, so it was super interesting,' Kataoka said. The dinner included a sparkling sake, which she says, has been hugely successful. 'It's compared to champagne. The bubbles don't last as long but has the taste a nd mouth feel .' A Wagyu beef dish was serv ed with Shichihonyari Muu Kimoto, a rich junmai sake known for going well with both seafood and meat. To make richer sakes, there's less polishing of the rice, keeping more of the husk. It takes skill as it can leav e unwanted flavours, Kataoka says. 'This sake maker is very good at it, keeping some grain and balancing acidity and depth a nd umami.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. With every visit to Japan, she discovers sake makers using new techniques, from the rice milling and fermentation, to aging, and experimenting with different woods, and trying different waters and yeasts. Or, for that matter, staying 100 per cent true to terroir. 'France's wine sommeliers now do sake judging, applying wine analysis to judge colour, aroma, and taste, exactly like wine. Sake makers have always been detailed and specific but now there's technology to analyze everything and scientifically keep sakes consistent from year to year.' Restaurant owner and sake whisperer Miki Ellis, (Dachi, Niwa) another longtime evangelist, loves triggering 'aha' sake moments for guests. 'Our team is excited about sake and recommending them, and we try to focus on unusual styles, the weird and wonderful sides of what sake can be, to further add to 'aha'! We have a lot of somms (sommeliers) and industry people come in and say, 'Oh my god, I never thought of it this way.'' And she's squared off with wine people at private dinners pitting sake against wine for each course. 'Sake won! It surprised us,' she admits. 'I have yet to find food that doesn't go well with sake. It's more of a challenge with wine.' Read More Vancouver Canucks Columnists Vancouver Canucks News Vancouver Whitecaps
