I'm a New Yorker who recently visited Japan. I was surprised to find clean bathrooms everywhere I went.

10.10.2023 - 21:41 / insider.com

I've lived in New York for more than a decade, and during a recent visit to Japan, I saw three major differences in how public spaces are utilized to the best of their potential in Tokyo.

When I came back to New York City, and people asked me about some of my favorite things in Japan, I said the trains, pedestrian safety, and the bathrooms. New York City planners could learn a lot of lessons from Japan's highly organized and effective use of shared spaces. 

In New York City, there aren't always public restrooms available. Even if areas open to the public, such as a park or a subway station, have restrooms, they aren't always open due to limited hours of operation or issues including disrepair.

Bathroom access is crucial, and it's especially important for people with various ailments, including Crohn's disease and other issues that make public restrooms necessary.

My experience finding accessible restrooms in Tokyo was completely different than in New York City. Bathrooms were everywhere, including train stations — and usually located in both the North and South ends of the station. Every bathroom was clean, and there were never any lines.

When I was outside Tokyo and traveling around Japan, I was hiking in the woods and didn't expect to find a bathroom. Restrooms in New York are hard enough to find in crowded areas that I wouldn't ever expect to find one in a less crowded place. However, in a remote region in Japan, there wasn't only a restroom, but it was pristine.

The bathrooms in some restrooms even had booster-like seats available for mothers to place their toddlers while they use the facilities.

Pedestrian safety is crucial anywhere but is especially necessary in cities where there are often many pedestrians sharing sidewalks and crossing streets that are crowded with cars, e-bikes, and e-scooters.

In Tokyo, I was in awe of the Shibuya Crossing, which is known as the world's busiest pedestrian crossing. Traffic stopped in all directions so pedestrians could cross everywhere. It was beautiful to witness and the result of very logical planning.

In New York City, pedestrian fatalities are an unfortunate reality for the city. Though the city rolled out Vision Zero in 2014 as a program to eventually result in zero fatalities for pedestrians, this hasn't been the reality.

I previously worked on policy issues for the New York City Council and researched the feasibility of implementing the Barnes Dance throughout busy intersections in New York City. One major safety hazard for pedestrians is that even when pedestrians have the right-of-way, traffic isn't stopped in all directions. Therefore, a pedestrian has the right-of-way to cross, but a vehicle is also technically allowed to make a turn at some