Jinrikisha - Rickshaw Service at Haneda Airport

A few months ago, Almost Japanese introduced the super-futuristic Toyota I-Real Personal Mobility robot being used at some Japanese airports, but Haneda Airport is taking it back old-school with the introduction of a rickshaw service.

The Japanese airline company, ANA, launched their Jinrikisha service for passengers at Haneda Airport yesterday - once you have cleared the security check, the traditionally dressed rickshaw drivers will take you for a free ride to your flight gate!
***Source:Shibuya246.com and photo from www.response.jp

Japanese Lesson: Jinrikisha (人力車, 人 jin = human, 力 riki = power or force, 車 sha = vehicle), which literally means “human-powered vehicle.” Today, you can enjoy a Jinrikisha experience, not only at Haneda Airport, but also at key tourist destinations such as Asakusa in Tokyo, or in Kyoto. Check out this vid of a Asakusa rickshaw driver who claims he was ‘born to run’

Japanese History:According to Wikipedia, Japanese sources often credit Izumi Yosuke, Suzuki Tokujiro, and Takayama Kosuke, who are said to have invented rickshaws in 1868 (year of the Meiji Restoration and end of Japan’s isolation), inspired by the horse carriages that had been introduced to the streets of Tokyo by the West. Starting in 1870, the Tokyo government issued a permission to build and sell rickshaws to these three men; the seal of one of these inventors was also required on every license to operate a rickshaw.

By 1872, historical sources estimate there might have been around 40,000 rickshaws operating in the Tokyo area, and became the chief form of public transportation in Japan. (Powerhouse Museum, 2005; The Jinrikisha story, 1996)