The government is aiming to start a tourist-centered ferry service in 2017 between Tokyo’s Haneda airport and the Akihabara electronics district, a government official said Saturday.
The Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry is planning to start regular service along a 20-km route linking a pier near Haneda’s international terminal with a dock in the Kanda River close to Akihabara, via Tokyo Bay and the Sumida River.
During the trip, passengers would be able to see the Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo Skytree and high-rise buildings in downtown Tokyo.
A guided cruise, on a vessel expected to seat about 40, would take about 150 minutes and cost around ¥3,000 ($25).
When the ministry offered the ferry ride on a trial basis for seven days in September, it attracted about 1,500 people, with 85 percent saying they would take it again.
The ministry is scheduled to run the ferry again between April and June this year and is soliciting operators.
The official said the service is expected to “benefit passengers arriving from abroad and other parts of Japan because it will increase their transportation choices.”
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A ferry passes through Tokyo's Akihabara district during a land ministry trial in September. The experiment was aimed at linking the capital's famous electronics and subculture mecca to Haneda airport, with regular service planned in 2017. | LAND, INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND TOURISM MINISTRY / KYODO
