Facilities Section, Railway Engineering Division,
Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai 

1. Introduction

In the subway operations of the Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai, we have promoted greater accessibility until now on the basis of the Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai Special Business Plan for Accessibility (FY 2004 – 2010) and the Second Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai Special Business Plan for Accessibility (FY 2011 – 2020; hereinafter, “the Second Special Business Plan for Accessibility”).

As the project duration of the Second Special Business Plan for Accessibility recently ended, we have newly drawn up the Third Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai Special Business Plan for Accessibility, taking into account the record of infrastructure upgraded so far and opinions received from the elderly and people with disabilities.

In this article, we will introduce initiatives related to the upgraded of tangible infrastructure on the subway, based on this plan.

2. Outline of the Third Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai Special Business Plan for Accessibility

(1) Project duration

FY 2021 – 2030 (ten years)
First phase: FY 2021 – 2025 (five years; hereinafter, “first phase of the Third Plan”)
Second phase: FY 2026 – 2030 (five years)

(2) Lines to be upgraded

The Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai runs two subway lines, the Namboku Line and the Tozai Line. Since each of the facilities on the Tozai Line, which opened in 2015, satisfy all the relevant legislation and standards, the first phase of the Third Plan focuses mainly on promoting greater accessibility of each of the facilities on the Namboku Line. 

3. Items for action in the first phase of the Third Plan

(1) Ongoing projects from the Second Special Business Plan for Accessibility

We are carrying out comprehensive improvement to the toilets in the stations on the Namboku Line, including removal of the steps at the entrances and increased provision of wheelchair-accessible toilets equipped with ostomate facilities. So far, we have upgraded the toilets in 14 of the 17 stations, and are scheduled to complete those in the remaining 3 stations during FY 2021.

We are also installing downward escalators between the ticket halls and the platforms on the Namboku Line in order to increase convenience. So far, we have installed them at 11 of the 16 target stations, and will continue our work to upgrade the remaining 5.

In addition, we will continue to upgrade audio information facilities and information/ guidance facilities such as signage indicating where to get on and off escalators.   

(2) New projects starting in the first phase of the Third Plan

① Reduction of the gaps between platforms and carriages

On the Namboku Line, there are gaps and differences in level between platforms and carriages. To deal with this, station staff put down a board to bridge the gap when a wheelchair user gets on or off the train. In the first phase of the Third Plan, we will install comb-shaped rubber strips along platform edges at each of the stations on the Namboku Line to reduce the gaps. In addition, by replacing the carriages used on the Namboku Line, as described later, we will reduce the differences in level. It is expected that by the time the replacement of the carriages is complete, in FY 2030, wheelchair users will be able to get on and off trains independently. As for the Tozai Line, gaps and differences in level were minimized from the start of operations, and wheelchair users can get on and off trains independently.

② Replacement of carriages

Since the carriages on the Namboku Line will soon come to the end of their service life, and in order to provide a safe and comfortable transportation service, we will replace them with 3000 series carriages between FY 2024 and FY 2030 (during the first phase of the Third Plan, we will carry out the replacement of the carriages for three trains). When replacing the carriages, we are working to make their facilities more accessible, as follows:

• Flashing lamps inside the carriages to indicate the timing of the opening and closing of the doors to people with hearing difficulties both inside and outside the carriages.
• Reduction of the differences in level between the platforms and carriage entrances by lowering the floor of the carriages.
• Provision of one space in each carriage for wheelchairs or strollers, equipped with horizontal handrails at two levels.
• Provision of information about the side on which doors will open at the next station, about the operation trains if trouble occurs, and so on via liquid crystal display panels inside the carriages.

After voting on the design of the new carriages, the decision about the design was made in May 2021.   

4. Conclusion

At the Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai, we will continue to work to improve services from the customer’s perspective, with safe operations as our first priority. We would be glad if you could use the Sendai City subway when you visit Sendai.

 * Please see the website of the Transportation Bureau, City of Sendai, for details of our initiatives for accessibility. https://www.kotsu.city.sendai.jp/