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What used to be a big “S” for subway is now an ornamented “M” for metro. Tokyo’s subways have changed.

There are many new lines. What stood out for me was the Namboku line (南北線). I used to live on what used to be the Mekama line (目蒲線), running between Kamata and Meguro, and the Namboku line is a continuation of the old Mekama tracks. My station was Numabe (沼部駅), which I used for 14 years, by far the longest of all the places I lived in Tokyo (see also here).

Numbering the subway stations is another novelty. I am not quite sure why it is done since it does not seem to make navigation easier, but maybe I am too locked into the old system. There are a number of maps of the subway system online, one of which shows all transfer stations by station number (als available in English), and one which puts subway lines and points of interest in relation.

While most subway lines belong to the Tokyo Metro system, operated by Tokyo Metro Co., some of them are Toei lines, operated by Tokyo Metropolitan Government. They have some new ones two, most notably the Ōedo line (大江戸線), a circular subway line.

Taking the subways (and trains) in Tokyo is not only economical and time-efficient, it is also a great way to get exercise. In one day of moving around the city and climbing the stairs from and to all the platforms I had walked more than during a whole month in Missouri.