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Comment by m0llusk | Hacker News Reader

> There is no stigma attached to riding the train, it’s simply the standard.

Actually, the problem with women getting groped on trains is both widespread and quite damaging in its impacts. It is important to keep issues like this in mind when reviewing different modes of getting about. Trains still serve the public quite well overall, but can be quite difficult for some.

Japan also never had anything quite like the Americans with Disabilities Act, so people in wheelchairs or scooters may encounter major barriers.

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You say groping is quite widespread. I am not going to argue because there is surely some improvement to be made there.

But context is important. Daily ridership of all Tokyo rail lines is around 40 million. So, assume reported groping cases are around twenty per day (this is a ballpark estimate I don't know the actual number). And say only one in fifty of actual cases are reported, that gives us 1000 actual gropings per day. So we have around 0.00025% of rides affected.

Again, it's not nothing and it should be better, but I wouldn't want people to get the impression that there is a high statistical likelihood of being groped when riding the rails in Tokyo.

good points, more wanted to express the idea that it may happen anywhere

On the last point, Tokyo has some of the more thoughtful accessibility bits of infrastructure: https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2301.html

I would not say it's Tokyo as a whole that is thoughtful. It's the individual designer which was thoughtful. Where Tokyo/Japan aided is by being receptive and giving the designer autonomy.

For local businesses, I’d agree but the major infrastructure, including trains, are incredibly accessible.

I chatted about it with a coworker who visited in a wheelchair. He couldn’t believe how accessible everything was and said it was the best city he’d ever been to since getting the wheelchair.

Japan as a whole is also extremely considerate of the blind.

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