How can a railroad company become “promoted”? Many people are addicted to supporting idols and artists by buying their goods, going to their live shows, and so on. So, how should “railroad fans” support their favorite railroads? A special lecture entitled “Let’s Think about the Future Together with Railway Fans: Fan Communities Pioneer the Future of Railway Companies” was held as part of the “JR West Group Innovation & Challenge Day” at Grand Front Umeda, Osaka, on January 27-28, 2012. The topic of the lecture was “How railroad companies should be “promoted” by railroad fans. Yukino Saito, a well-known TV personality and train fan, Yuta Murakami, a train photographer, and Kota Wada, a Nippon Travel Agency employee, took the stage. Saki Iwashima of JR West Innovations, who has experience as an operator at JR West, also spoke about how railroad fans and railroad companies should interact through “Railil,” a social networking service dedicated to railroads that she operates. It seems that the railroad companies are also trying to be the fans’ guess through trial and error. What kind of future will be created by the interaction between railroad fans and railroad companies?
She also travels in her private life! Yukino Saito’s Iron Travel Experience Next, Yukino Saito, a TV personality who travels around the Kansai region through her hobby of train travel, talked about her private train trips. Ms. Iwashima asked, “Do you have any experiences that made you happy or left a lasting memory? Ms. Saito: I have a recent experience that made me happy. Mr. Saito: One of the most memorable experiences recently was participating in the “Uyamusubi” sightseeing train tour. I applied for the tour, which lasted about three hours in total, leaving Kinosaki Onsen in the early afternoon, staying at Amarube Station for about an hour, and returning, all at a branch of Nippon Ryoko. The day was private, and I went to see what kind of atmosphere the train would have inside and what it would offer. There, thanks to our guide, a man named Mr. Kimura, the interior of the car was interesting! Even though the scenery is only rice paddies, “Here come these birds!” He gives us advice and tells us how to enjoy the scenery. An ordinary scene was transformed into a unique one through various stories. I also made friends who are still good friends with me through the ride on the Twilight Express. So, of course the trains are wonderful, but I think it is important to go on a train trip and make connections with the people you meet because of your participation. The charm of train travel lies not only in the experience of riding in a rare train, but also in the contact with people, and Mr. Saito’s Umiyamamusubi experience provided him with “new insights through encounters with wonderful guides,” which Mr. Iwashima of JR West would have been envious of. Mr. Wada of Nippon Travel Agency, who was on the stage that day, said he knows Mr. Kimura, the tour guide who accompanied him, well (from the same company) and respects him as a guide. He is also a close friend of Mr. Kimura in private. “When we go out for drinks together, he has a huge vocabulary and won’t let me go home for about six hours,” Mr. Wada said.
© Source travel watch