Locker-to-hotel luggage delivery service expanding in Japan
The service allows users to leave their luggage in lockers and have their items delivered the same day to the hotels where they are staying.
Last year, West Japan Railway and Osaka Metro launched the service in Osaka Prefecture, which has been attracting many visitors due to the World Expo. East Japan Railway and Tokyo Metro are increasing the number of stations in Tokyo where the service is available.
Tourists bringing large suitcases onto trains and buses have sometimes caused problems. The expansion of the locker-to-hotel delivery service is expected to ease congestion on public transportation.
To use the delivery service, the luggage must be placed in a specific locker. Fees vary depending on the size of the luggage and location, ranging from around ¥1,500 to ¥3,500.
In March last year, JR West launched the service with lockers in Shin-Osaka Station and Universal-City Station, the closest station to Universal Studios Japan. In Osaka, the service is currently available at seven stations. The monthly average number of users in March-May this year was up roughly threefold compared with the period between April last year to February this year. A JR West official said that the service is thriving due in part to inbound demand.
Spacer, a Tokyo-based company that manufactures and operates lockers for the service, said that the firm launched the business in Osaka by collaborating with railway companies and others in anticipation of train congestion after the kickoff of the Osaka Expo.
"The service has gradually spread," said Daisuke Tokunaga, president of Spacer. Osaka Metro has also teamed up with Spacer to provide the service since December last year.
Tokyo Metro, which launched the service at Oshiage Station in May, plans to boost the number stations where the service is available to around 20 in the capital.
JR East Smart Logistics Co. entered the business in September last year. It has lockers for the service at 15 stations in Tokyo, including Tokyo and Shinjuku stations.
The firm also set up the lockers at four stations belonging to Keihan Electric Railway in Kansai in April and at Kyoto Station in June in collaboration with Central Japan Railway.
"We are still in the phase of gaining recognition (for the service,) but usage is increasing gradually," said an official of JR East Smart Logistics.
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