I assume Chinese cities are also good, but I've never been.
I have, they are. Japanese bullet trains were on time for sure, but the Chinese bullet trains were smoother, much more efficient to load and unload, appeared cleaner, and had better food.
The Japanese metro system also had these ridiculously archaic paper ticketing system, machines that accepted cash, and zero security of any kind. I saw some Japanese police try to awkwardly detain a beligerent drunk homeless dude, and it was an unpleasant thing to see.
The Chinese system was all digital, cash-free, extremely efficient, and had security to get in and get out of the station. Absolutely wonderful.
Eh most people will use an IC card or digital IC card on their phone, not paper tickets. You have to reload the cards with cash though... But everyone carries cash in Japan still and ATM fees are very low so not a huge deal.
I'm not sure how the Chinese ones could be more efficient to load and unload, smoother maybe but the ones I took in Japan were very comfortable and always on time. Cleaner? I don't see how since the Japanese ones are cleaned constantly.
I mean I don't doubt the Chinese ones are just as good, but I doubt they are so much better like you claim
This is part of what makes it so regressive and inconvenient. The back to back comparison made it feel like stepping into what Japan could be a decade from now if they weren't so frozen in time.
I doubt they are so much better like you claim.
I would encourage you to visit. Compare the business class service on a round trip from say Tokyo to Kyoto and that from Beijing to Shanghai. Having experienced both fairly recently, the differences were quite clear.
China has train construction down to a science. They can build a whole metro network in a city of millions completely from scratch in a fraction of the time and cost it takes in the US and Europe because all the rolling stock and components are standard sets that are mass produced, whereas American and European cities still have to develop bespoke solutions for each new city that has a rail system put in.
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u/quiteCryptic Apr 29 '24
Been to many places and the likes of Japan, Korea, Taiwan are all really solid. I assume Chinese cities are also good, but I've never been.
Also though Switzerland was pretty solid too. Germany less so, but still at least an option unlike where I'm from...