Okinawa Monorail Sightseeing Ride: Unique Public Transport in 4K

#japan #okinawa #okinawaisland #monorail I invite you to a sightseeing tour on a very interesting means of public transport. The Okinawa Monorail, officially known as the Yui Rail, is a 17-kilometer elevated transit system serving Naha and Urasoe in Okinawa Prefecture. It operates 19 stations, stretching from Naha Airport through the city center to Tedako-Uranishi Station. The line was planned from 1972, which was the same year as Okinawa's return to Japan. The monorail's route was decided in 1977, and the opening year for the line was set to 1987. However, in order to build the monorail, bus routes in the city had to be revamped, and the discussion with bus operators regarding compensation for the revamp took until 1994. The construction began in 1996, and the line opened on August 10, 2003. The line has since then extended to Urasoe on October 1, 2019. Trains run on the line from exactly 6:00 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. every day, with an interval of 4–15 minutes. All services stop at every station, although some services terminate at Shuri Station. The line has been using the Okinawa Urban Monorail 1000 series electric multiple units since its opening in 2003, which were mostly manufactured by Hitachi Rail. All stations feature a piece of art and are barrier-free.