...and you may be understandably skeptical of how realistic this advice is. Obviously, better frequency, nicer trains, higher speeds help...
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...but let's assume we want to raise ridership with zero budget. What then? Consider the Flower Nagai Line in rural Yamagata Prefecture...pic.twitter.com/eICr3Mzvy7
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...this is a third-sector railway, unprofitable, which in 2005 faced closure due to collapsing ridership.pic.twitter.com/tG13ynpqv1
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Facing absolute declines in population and employment, the only future for the line could be in its tourist appeal.pic.twitter.com/Frtokk1DFs
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A single train driver--Asakura Tatsuo--took matters into his own hands and started giving guided tours in the local dialect to riders.pic.twitter.com/cOgouRwIHa
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This was done without informing the management--they didn't notice until the numbers started coming in.pic.twitter.com/VJY3l1XAf6
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After a year of these guided tours, ridership from non-locals had increased 20 fold, from 350 to 7,000, all without spending a dime.pic.twitter.com/kRuqoEJEFe
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Seek excellence - be ambitious - anything is possible!
#TrainTwitterpic.twitter.com/Ln1vYE3AWP
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