Front-door boarding
What front-door boarding is
Front-door boarding means getting on through the door at the front of the bus. Because the farebox sits right beside the driver's seat, the basic form pairs it with paying up front, settling the fare at the same moment you board. Drop cash into the farebox as you get on, or tap a transit IC card on the reader, and the payment is complete; when your stop comes you step out through the middle or rear door.
What makes this possible is the flat fare, the same amount to pay whatever the distance. If the price is identical however far you ride, the fare can be fixed at the moment you board. Toei Bus routes inside Tokyo's 23 wards, along with most local buses in the central parts of the city, use this front-door, pay-as-you-board arrangement.
How boarding works
Boarding a front-door bus comes down to three beats.
- When the bus has stopped, get on through the front door.
- Pay at the farebox right beside you. One tap for an IC card; in cash, drop in the fare.
- Move along to a free seat. To get off, press the stop request button and leave by the middle or rear door.
Since the payment was finished at the boarding door, getting off is nothing more than stepping out. Even on a day with both hands full of bags, there is no worry about fumbling as you leave. If you are paying cash, having the coins ready in your hand before you board keeps the flow unbroken and makes boarding smooth on a rainy day or when you are loaded with shopping. Our guide to riding Toei buses sets out the procedure in full.
How it differs from rear-door boarding
The counterpart to front-door boarding is rear-door boarding. You get on through the middle or rear door and pay at the front door as you get off, so it goes together with paying afterwards. It is the method used on routes where the fare changes with distance: as you board you either take a numbered boarding ticket or tap an IC card to record where you got on, and the fare is settled when you get off.
Which door you use and when you pay, in other words, are decided as a set with the fare system on that route. Remember it as: a bus you board at the front is one you pay as you get on, a bus you board at the rear is one you pay as you get off, and you will not go far wrong even in a place you have never been. Once the doors open you can also check on the spot, by watching which way the people around you move and reading the notice beside the door on the side of the bus.
Common questions
How can I tell which method a bus uses before I board?
An easy clue to check is the equipment at the boarding door. A front-boarding bus has the farebox right beside the front door, and each passenger pauses there for a moment as they get on. A rear-boarding bus has only a ticket dispenser and an IC card reader at the middle door, because payment comes at the end of the ride. Read the entrance and exit notices beside the doors, watch where the first passengers head, and you will not go wrong even on an unfamiliar route.
Do I tap my IC card again when I get off?
Not on a front-boarding, flat-fare route: one tap as you board settles the whole fare, and you simply step off at your stop. On rear-boarding routes, where the fare depends on distance, you tap both as you get on and as you get off so the system knows how far you rode. The number of taps follows the boarding method, which is worth remembering to spare yourself the doubt.
Do all Tokyo buses board at the front?
Most local buses in the central wards do, since they charge a flat fare, and Toei routes inside the 23 wards are the classic example. Head out to the suburbs, though, and you will meet distance-fare routes that board at the middle or rear door instead. The notice beside the door settles it on the spot.
Once you know how you will board, the Busdoko map can show you how close your bus is while you wait at the stop.