Express bus
What an express bus is
An express bus is a bus that runs past some of the stops along the way and calls only at the main ones. The thinking is the same as an express train: cutting the number of stops covers the same stretch in less time. Even when it follows exactly the same roads as a bus that calls everywhere, the places it pulls in are different.
Toei Bus, too, sometimes sets up express routes on services to leisure destinations or on stretches where demand concentrates. Express runs are marked as express on the destination sign and in the timetable, and the route number carries a symbol marking it as an express, so they are always presented separately from the all-stops runs.
What to watch when you board
With an express bus, the one thing that matters above all is to check before boarding whether it stops where you want to get off. Step aboard without thinking and it will sail past your stop and carry you on to its next stopping point. The stops served by express runs are listed on the timetable and the notices at the stop, so take one look before you get on. When the bus pulls up, the word express on the destination sign is the clue that tells them apart. Even if you only realize once aboard, there is no need to panic: get off at the next stop it makes and take a bus back the other way.
Conversely, when both the stop you board at and the stop you get off at are served by the express, it is well worth going out of your way to catch one. The journey is not just shorter; with fewer stops the ride itself is calmer, and the longer the distance, the more clearly you feel the difference.
How it differs from similar terms
Words easily confused with express (急行, kyūkō) include rapid (快速, kaisoku) and direct (直行, chokkō). What operators call them varies, but they all belong to the same family in that they run past some of the stops; only the extent of the skipping and the way it is signed differ. Highway buses (高速バス, kōsoku basu), which travel on expressways, and airport limousine buses are a separate category, with fare rules and reservation systems unlike those of local buses, and they are kept distinct from express buses.
In every case, when in doubt the sure method is to compare the timetable posted at the boarding point with the destination sign on the bus that has arrived. Confirm the stops it serves and an express bus becomes a reassuring option for saving time.