An expressway bus is seen parked outside Narita Airport in Narita, Chiba Prefecture, July 29, 2023. (Mainichi/Tadakazu Nakamura)
TOKYO — About 40% of expressway bus users in Japan are members of Generation Z, aged 18 to 29, with the most common purpose among repeat riders being “oshikatsu” — activities to show support for favorite performers, athletes or characters — according to a recent private survey.
The internet survey was conducted in June by Tokyo-based OpenDoor Inc., operator of the online trip comparison site Travelko. From a pool of 40,000 women and men aged 18 to 59, the company queried 990 people who had used expressway or overnight buses for domestic travel within the past year.
The largest share of bus users were women aged 18 to 29, at 23.2%, followed by men in the same age group at 16.5%, highlighting the predominance of younger riders.
Heavy users, defined as those riding five times or more annually, accounted for 37.7% of total expressway bus use. When including those who took the buses at least three times a year, the figure rose to 60%, showing that frequent riders underpin the market.
‘Oshikatsu’ tops among repeat users
An analysis of expressway bus use among 18- to 29-year-olds — the largest user group — by annual number of rides found that oshikatsu was the leading purpose of travel, accounting for 54.3% of those riding five times or more a year, and 35.1% of those riding two to four times.
For those who used expressway bus services just once in the past year, sightseeing was the most common reason at 49.2%, followed by oshikatsu at 19.6%.
Breaking down oshikatsu activities, concerts and music events were the most common at 74.4%, followed by attending sports events at 14.9% and visits to “sacred sites” linked to pop culture at 10.7%.
Keeping travel costs down
Across all purposes, the top reason for choosing expressway buses was affordability. Among oshikatsu users, 76.7% cited the desire to travel as cheaply as possible.
According to Travelko, one-way expressway bus fares from Tokyo to Osaka start at around 3,500 yen (about $24) per adult.
The survey analyst noted, “Respondents appear eager to save on transportation and lodging so they can spend more on events and merchandise related to their favorite public figures.”
(Japanese original by Ei Okada, Digital News Department)
AloJapan.com