Foreign tourists in Japan will have a less confusing time trying to identify roads and landmarks thanks to the introduction of standardized English words and eradication of "Romanized" Japanese words on public signs, transport ministry officials said.
Revised transport ministry guidelines that took effect Tuesday require that signs showing the name of a street, avenue or boulevard use those words or their abbreviations, instead of relying only on the word "dori," the catch-all Japanese equivalent.
In the case of an established road name, such as Tokyo's Aoyama-dori, the new guidelines allow use of the traditional Japanese name but requires that "Ave." be added to make it "Aoyama-dori Ave."