Bus glossary

Approach information

Guidance that tells you roughly where a bus in service is running right now and how many stops away it is. Used together with the timetable, which shows the plan, it makes the wait far easier to predict.

Boarding point

The place where you wait in order to board a bus. Even at bus stops sharing one name, the boarding points are frequently split up by direction and by route, and at terminals such as those in front of stations they are distinguished by numbers or letters.

Bus depot

The base where buses are stored and where inspection, maintenance, cleaning and refueling are carried out. It is also called an operations office. Once you know where the depots along your route are, bus movements such as deadheading runs and depot-bound services start to make sense.

Bus location system

The general term for the machinery that keeps track of where buses are while they are running and passes that on to riders through displays at bus stops and arrival pages on the web. The approach information you see as a rider is what this system produces.

Bus stop (teiryujo)

A named point where buses pull up to let passengers on and off. It means the same as the everyday Japanese word basu-tei, and a single stop can contain several boarding points, split by direction and by route.

Community bus

A locally focused bus service planned and run by a city or ward. Small vehicles link the narrow residential streets and public facilities that ordinary route buses do not reach, and fares and the tickets you can use are often set independently.

Daiya (service schedule)

The operating plan that sets out when buses run and how many of them. The timetable at a bus stop is that plan laid out as a list, and it is normal for separate schedules to be drawn up for weekdays, Saturdays and holidays.

Dango unten (bus bunching)

The word for buses on the same route running strung together in a line. It happens when the lead bus falls behind through congestion or a rush of boardings and the buses behind catch up. Typically the second bus and those after it are lightly loaded.

Deirikobin (in-service garage trips)

A trip that carries passengers while doubling as a run out of or back into the garage. It runs signed for a destination such as a garage rather than the route's usual terminus, so if you are getting off within the section it covers, it effectively adds to the number of buses you can take.

Destination sign

The display of route number and destination carried on the front, side and rear of a bus, also called a hōkōmaku. Know how to read it and you can judge in a few seconds whether the bus coming toward you is one you should board.

Express bus

A form of local bus operation that narrows down the stops served and calls only at the main ones. It shortens the journey, but it may run straight past the stop you want, so checking before you board is essential.

First bus (shihatsu)

The very first bus to leave on a given day. The same Japanese word is also used for the stop a route starts from. Times change with the timetable for each day of the week, so for an early start it pays to check the day before.

Flat fare

A fare system in which every ride costs the same amount no matter how far you travel. It is used on Toei Bus routes inside Tokyo's 23 wards and is normally paired with front-door boarding, where you pay as you get on.

Front-door boarding

A method in which you get on through the front door and pay your fare as you board. It is used widely on flat-fare buses, including Toei Bus routes inside Tokyo's 23 wards. When you get off, you simply step out through the middle or rear door.

Heijitsu daiya (weekday schedule)

The operating plan applied on weekdays, Monday through Friday. Service is built up heavily in the morning and evening to match commuting and school travel. Take care: a public holiday normally runs on the holiday schedule even though it falls on a weekday.

Hyochu (bus stop pole)

The pole-shaped sign standing at a bus stop, carrying the stop name, the routes that serve it and the timetable. Buses pull up at the position of this pole, so it sets the place to wait and the place to look things up. One pole stands at each boarding point.

Ichinichi joshaken (one-day pass)

A ticket that lets you get on and off the routes it covers as many times as you like over the course of one day. Toei Bus has a one-day pass of its own, so on a day when you plan to ride again and again you can travel without a thought for the fare.

Kaiso (running out of service)

Moving a bus without passengers aboard. It is done for trips to and from the garage among other things, and a bus whose destination sign reads kaiso is one you cannot board. Know this display and you can judge at a glance whether the bus coming toward you is one you can take.

Keito (bus route)

The unit of a route, describing the course a bus travels. A route number or name is given to each combination of starting point, terminus and roads taken along the way. It is the most basic clue there is for telling which bus is the one to board.

Kyujitsu daiya (holiday schedule)

The operating plan applied on days off such as Sundays and public holidays. It is often built with somewhat fewer runs than the weekday schedule, and on some routes the first bus is later and the last bus earlier, so holiday mornings and nights call for extra care.

Last bus

The final bus to run on a given day, also called the final departure. Many routes finish earlier than the last train, and times shift with the timetable for each day of the week, so checking early is essential when you go out at night.

Late-night bus

A route bus running in the late-night hours, normally with a premium fare. Services are set up on routes such as those linking stations with residential areas to get people home after the last train, and they are presented separately from daytime runs.

Non-step bus

A local bus built with the step at the doorway removed and the floor set low. Fitted with devices that tilt the body toward the curb or lay down a ramp, it is a vehicle that older passengers and riders with wheelchairs or strollers can board and leave easily.

Numbered boarding ticket

On buses where the fare rises with distance, the numbered ticket you take as you board to prove which stop you got on at. When you get off, you look for the column with your number on the fare display inside the bus and pay the amount shown there.

Service interval

The gap in time before the next bus on the same route reaches the same stop. Routes with short intervals let you ride without minding the timetable, but road conditions can throw the intervals off, which is where approach information helps.

Silver Pass

A travel pass for Tokyo residents aged 70 and over, valid on Toei buses and the rest of Toei transit as well as on private bus routes within Tokyo. Holders pay a set contribution to buy it and renew it each period of validity.

Stop request button

The button inside the bus that tells the driver you want to get off at the next stop. Pressing it sounds a chime and lights an indicator, and the bus is then certain to pull in at the next stop. If nobody presses it, the bus may drive straight past.

Terminus

The last stop a particular run of a bus reaches. The place name on the destination sign is that run's terminus, and every passenger gets off there. Even within one route some runs stop short, so checking the destination before you board is essential.

Transit IC card

A card, typified by PASMO and Suica, that pays your fare with nothing more than a tap. The fare comes out of a balance you have loaded in advance, and on Toei buses a single tap as you board completes the payment.

Turnaround point

The place where a bus that has reached the terminus changes direction and waits until its next departure. Unlike a depot it does no storage or maintenance; it exists so that services can turn around safely at the end of a route and head back.