New Shinkansen luggage drop-off system begins in Japan, making train travel even easier

“Hands-Free” service lets Shinkansen travellers send their suitcases by bullet train without carrying them onboard. Travelling by Shinkansen is one of the highlights of any trip to Japan, but there’s

“Hands-Free” service lets Shinkansen travellers send their suitcases by bullet train without carrying them onboard.

Travelling by Shinkansen is one of the highlights of any trip to Japan, but there’s one thing that can take the shine off the experience – having to lug big suitcases with you onboard and through crowded stations during the journey.

Now, East Japan Railways (JR East) is working to alleviate that problem, by introducing a new drop-off luggage option for travellers so they can ride the bullet train hands-free.

Introduced as part of the company’s “JRE Tebura Tabi” (“JRE Hands-Free Travel”) service, this new system makes use of JR East train station lockers and its Hakobyun luggage transport network to offer a more seamless drop-off and delivery system for customers. The new service is due to begin on 1 August, when passengers will be able to store their luggage in “Multi-Ecube” lockers at Tokyo Station or Sendai Station for same-day delivery to hotels that accept deliveries in the other city.

▼ Up until now, these lockers could only be used to send luggage to nearby hotels within the same area, but this marks the first time they will be used for same-day delivery between different prefectures.

To use the new cross-prefecture service, simply reserve a locker through the Multi-Ecube website and place your luggage inside the assigned locker in the morning for delivery to a hotel later that day. Reservations must be made by 9:30 a.m. on the day of use, and luggage must be deposited by 10:30 a.m. The service costs 3,500 yen (US$21.55) for S-size lockers, 3,600 yen for M-size lockers and 3,700 yen for L-size lockers, with one bag or case allowed per locker.

Previously, passengers were only able to use the “Hands-Free Travel” service for cross-city deliveries by taking their luggage directly to a participating station counter. Although that option still exists, this new system gives travellers a quicker and easier way to forward their luggage, helping to ease the stress associated with travel.

Though the initial locker dropoff system will connect Tokyo and Sendai, the service is expected to expand in the future, with JR East saying it plans to introduce the system for airport deliveries as well. From autumn, travellers will be able to drop their luggage off in a locker in Tokyo and have it delivered directly to the counter at Narita or Haneda airports.

JR East is also testing a future system where travellers could leave their luggage at a station locker before heading to the airport, then collect it from a locker when they arrive. The company hopes this could eventually lead to an entirely customer-led system, giving passengers more freedom of movement and greater autonomy during their journeys.

Unlike traditional truck-based luggage forwarding services, this new cross-city locker drop-off system uses JR East’s Hakobyun Quick service, which transports luggage by Shinkansen. The speed of the bullet train allows for same-day delivery over long distances that would typically take overnight by road.

▼ Tokyo and Sendai are around 350 kilometres apart on the Shinkansen, with the journey taking 1.5 hours by bullet train, compared to 3.5 hours by road.

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JR East is currently leading the way in Shinkansen-based luggage transport, having set up an entire logistics system that supports not only the tourist sector but wider businesses such as restaurants, who are able to receive fresh produce from rural regions, thanks to the efficient bullet-train network.

With JR East showing how it can be done, perhaps one day JR Central, the operator of the Tokaido Shinkansen route between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka, will also be able to implement a similar service, although with more limited space and less time between departures it would be more of a challenge. For now, though, the introduction of the new locker drop-off system paves the way for faster and more efficient travel up north, which will hopefully encourage more visitors to visit the region and discover all its hidden charms.

*Related: Multi-Ecube reservation site

Featured image: Pakutaso*