Bicyle in Tokyo

[Tannenbaum]

I do have some questions about riding a bicycle in Tokyo. There this thread, http://www.japanesepod101.com/forum/vie ... e&start=15, but it doesn't go into Tokyo very much.

I will be in Tokyo for 6 months (March to September) this year and am thinking of getting a bicycle for that time. I have been in Tokyo before and had found the operation hours of public transport very very annoying, especially on the weekends. A bicycle might be a way to evade the unfortunate early endings of ouh so many nice summer nights.

I come from a small little town that is very convenient for cyclists. One can ride on almost every road and street, and parking is never an issue at all. And this is where I have my doubts on whether or not I will be able to live my habits just as I am used from home.

When I told my Japanese friends about my plan, they told me my place is too far to go by bicycle to where I want. But the distances don't seem much longer than what I am used to, at least judging from googlemaps' walking directions.

- Do you have experience of commuting by bicycle in Tokyo? I am not talking of just going to the station by bike, but actually to (or as near as possible) a place like Ikebukuro.

- Can I ride a bike on the sidewalk? or on the street? (my memory tells me streets would be too dangerously narrow though)

- What is the parking situation? Do I have to pay everywhere? Or is it possible to lock a bike to a pole in say a park or something?

[Jessi]

Hi Tannenbaum,
Thank you for posting!
I'm afraid that even though I live in Tokyo, I'm not familiar with bicycling around here as I don't have a bike, but I can share what I know, along with a link that has more information.

I have some coworkers who do bike to work, so it is definitely possible, although I don't think it's very common (although many people do use bikes to ride to nearest train station, as you mentioned). Biking on sidewalks is technically not allowed in many areas, but it's one of those things that is not enforced, and so everyone does it anyway.

Parking is something I'm not so sure about. There are bicycle parking lots available, but I believe that you have to pay by the month to use them, so they are more for people who would be using the same one frequently. People tend to park their bikes on the sidewalks and near the stations a lot too (in illegal areas), so a lot of the time the police will put notices on them saying that they must remove them, or they will be taken away. They don't do it immediately as far as I know, but it's probably not a good idea to take the chance. Maybe someone with more experience using a bike in Tokyo can let us know about the parking situation.

Also, I found this site which may be helpful: http://www.tokyobybike.com/

I hope this helps somewhat