Passenger Brings Folding Chair Onto Shinkansen Hayabusa, Sparks Backlash — JR East Responds

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A passenger who brought a folding chair into the standing-ticket area of the Shinkansen Hayabusa and proudly posted about how comfortable it was on social media has drawn a wave of criticism. JR East has stated that “it’s not a problem as long as it doesn’t get in the way of other passengers, such as blocking the aisle,” and discussion on 5ch has spread to whether standing tickets should even exist, and whether all seats should be made reservation-only.

8/22 (Sat) 9:30 JST

Weekly Josei PRIME

On August 17, a post on Threads about disruptive behavior on the Shinkansen caused a stir.

Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

6Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:13:38.56ID:1hWiEDLS0
"Standing seat" doesn't even make sense as a phrase, honestly.
201Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:44:41.48ID:F/NGx2uf0
>>6
Standing bar: "We've got seats available!" (a jab at tachinomiya, bars where everyone stands anyway)
12Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:14:51.72ID:6ICLf35s0
Just sell non-reserved seats already, morons.
29Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:19:03.34ID:DnylCrfw0
>>12
Exactly. Non-reserved seats are the whole point of having a Shinkansen in the first place. But now even the Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen has started copying JR East's bad habit during peak season.
103Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:30:04.01ID:iIeiqGHm0
>>29
If you're coming from Morioka, take the Yamabiko instead. If that's too slow, just book a reserved seat.
147Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:35:29.53ID:hoq/toAw0
>>29
All-reserved seating is better precisely because it keeps out the clueless idiots who never plan ahead.
16Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:15:50.82ID:QJQPf5Ta0
I hate this penny-pinching mentality of charging money just to let someone stand.
58Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:22:59.65ID:Ln10IpDy0
>>16
Isn't demanding it be free just because you're standing on the Shinkansen the real penny-pinching move here?
18Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:16:02.26ID:kv1mzZDO0
There are cane-seats and umbrella-seats you can sit on, you know.
77Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:25:36.45ID:J+luRAsh0
>>18
Mine's a backpack you can sit on. Google "backpack chair," lol.
30Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:19:11.15ID:iZBv0H1t0
Kodama (means "echo" — i.e. speed of sound)
Hikari (means "light" — speed of light)
Nozomi (means "wish" — joke: speed of quantum entanglement)

Wait, isn't Hayabusa ("falcon") slower than the speed of sound?
224Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:49:05.53ID:IGj/IscK0
>>30
Well, it does have a track record of going farther than sound waves ever could — all the way to the asteroid Itokawa (a nod to the Hayabusa space probe).
31Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:19:11.70ID:t04N7n7i0
A folding chair should be fine, no? Just fold it up once you reach the station. It's not like it's some plush recliner — no need to get so worked up about it.
280Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:59:36.69ID:zKVFKDgO0
>>31
>A folding chair should be fine, no? Just fold it up once you reach the station. It's not like it's some plush recliner — no need to get so worked up about it.

If you actually look at the poster's photo, it's not one of those tiny old-school folding stools that just prop up your butt. It's a Coleman chair with a backrest, armrests, and a drink holder — looks genuinely comfortable. And it's huge.
93Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:28:14.06ID:3lenuZDn0
Is something like this image okay — a cane that doubles as a chair when you need it?


133Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:33:54.29ID:LVhNLOW40
Rather than blasting JR East for selling this ridiculous thing called a "standing express ticket" in the first place, everyone piles on the little guy instead — so typically Japanese, always siding with authority and punching down.
149Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:35:43.63ID:iIeiqGHm0
>>133
Just book a reserved seat. Are you broke? Then take the bus.
154Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:36:40.13ID:VUdUzZYE0
>>149
That "3 hours" thing only comes up when the train's fully booked.
142Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:34:41.17ID:xkfmTVJ10
What about wheelchair users, huh?
Gonna tell Clara to stand up too? (a nod to the famous "Clara, you're standing!" scene from Heidi)
153Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:36:35.20ID:7mCBp0kt0
>>142
If you want to ride in a wheelchair that badly, I'll help you lose a leg. You're welcome.
165Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:38:23.31ID:qs+o1DE60
>>142
That guy was zipping around on his hands like it was nothing.
179Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:41:00.52ID:EpnwwfE+0
>>142
Actually, Clara's been standing up just fine for quite a while now.
157Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:37:17.36ID:jXoxWwBi0
Why not just sell reserved seats only?
What even is a "standing ticket," lol
A ticket gives you the right to use that space, doesn't it?
If you're allowed to leave a bag there, a chair should be fine too.
185Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:42:01.56ID:DhAZL4an0
>>157
I don't think they said it's banned — just don't get in the way.
"Please don't obstruct other passengers' movement," basically.
225Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:49:06.45ID:xgZ74bea0
>>157
I've bought a standing ticket on the Hayabusa from Tokyo to Misawa myself — same price as a reserved seat. There are about 3 standing spots per car, and you're expected to stand near the boarding doors. Even if there's an open seat nearby, you can't sit in it. Basically it's a ticket for the doorway space. Next time I use it, I was planning to bring a Gadabout Chair — would that be rude?
205Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:45:32.67ID:77Xtf20e0
Even if it's fine when just one person does it, think about what happens if everyone does.
206Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:45:57.61ID:85nfHrz70
>>205
Exactly, that's the point.
212Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:46:57.68ID:1OcXdte80
>>205
"So what if everyone did it" — that's a naive take.
214Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:47:08.51ID:bRRmH+/30
>>205
Nothing would really happen, lol. Plenty of people already drag huge suitcases on board anyway.
222Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:48:48.21ID:/oG+gndG0
It's all over 🥺

247Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:53:30.05ID:4juCY5lX0
>>1
https://www.jprime.jp/mwimgs/d/b/360/img_db32e792e11e55049b7eb5a01c0e88a8936416.jpg
295Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 14:02:11.60ID:zKVFKDgO0
Yeah, this, this one right here >>247
282Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 13:59:53.10ID:bYH8HZOH0
>>1
At the Osaka Expo, I was shocked how many people were casually sitting on folding chairs just like this one while waiting in those massive lines. Probably regulars who knew the ropes.

https://thumbnail.image.rakuten.co.jp/@0_mall/e-monostore1/cabinet/2025-9-1/70953_1k2.jpg
293Anonymous2026/08/22(土) 14:02:01.81ID:80Q4rlYh0
>>282
At places like Maihama (Tokyo Disney) and Universal Studios Japan, people camp out overnight in line with these things all the time.

*This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (News Speed+) thread “[Railways] Backlash Erupts Over “Life Hack” Bragging About Bringing a Chair Onto the Shinkansen Hayabusa… The Rule JR East Revealed.”

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