LY Communications

LINE Fukuoka Corporation (“LINE Fukuoka”; Location: Hakata Ward, Fukuoka; Representative Director, President, and Chief Executive Officer: Noritaka Ochiai) is pleased to announce a collaboration with Nishi-Nippon Railroad Co., Ltd. (“Nishi-Nippon Railroad”; Location: Hakata Ward, Fukuoka; Representative Director and President: Sumio Kuratomi) in preventing the spread of COVID-19. Starting May 21, two official LINE accounts operated by Nishi-Nippon Railroad will deliver congestion information for buses and Nishitetsu trains operating in the central Fukuoka area.

A feature that lets you access up to date congestion information on LINE is now available

Congestion information is delivered through Nishi-Nippon Railroad’s official “Nishitetsu Bus” (LINE ID: @nishitetsu_bus) and “[Official] Nishitetsu Train” (LINE ID: @nishitetsu_train) LINE accounts. Nishi-Nippon Railroad bus or train passengers can check congestion on the accounts and use that information for reference to avoid crowds through measures such as staggered commuting.

<Check congestion information>

• Access a list of the most up-to-date congestion information from the account’s rich menu with just one tap.
• You can also select a train line to get congestion information specific to that line.

Note:
– The images above are from the Nishitetsu Bus account (LINE ID: @nishitetsu_bus).
– Images were taken from a demo version of the account, and may change.

Collaboration resulting from the public release of bus and train congestion, and a proposal to utilize LINE official accounts

On May 11, Nishi-Nippon Railroad publicly released congestion information on buses and trains operating in the central Fukuoka area for passengers to use as a reference in staggering their commutes and avoiding crowds. Following the release, LINE Fukuoka contacted Nishi-Nippon Railroad with the proposal of delivering this information through the popular LINE service as a COVID-19 countermeasure, and collaboration between the two companies began.

The State of Emergency related to COVID-19 has been lifted in Fukuoka, and public transport use is expected to rise, so it is important to put prevention measures that will become a part of our “new lifestyle” (such as avoiding close contact and staggered commuting) into practice.

By overcoming company boundaries to work together, we will create an environment that allows commuters easier access to information for avoiding crowds.

Medium and long-term collaboration policy in mobility and tourism

Preventing the spread of COVID-19 was the seed for this collaboration, but in order to advance mid- to long term urban development in the fields of mobility and tourism, we plan to continue collaborating to meet society’s needs.

LINE Fukuoka is aiming to make Fukuoka a richer, more convenient, and future-oriented “Smart City” by utilizing LINE technology in initiatives based on the “Comprehensive Partnership Agreement on Community Collaboration Projects” signed with the city.

Additionally, the Nishitetsu Group (including Nishi-Nippon Railroad) is undertaking projects that prioritize safety and comfort, as well as support the daily lives of local residents based on the message of “Connecting your dreams.”

Both companies are committed to putting their technology and knowledge together to make daily life better and more convenient for all residents.

LINE Fukuoka believes that co-creation with other companies and organizations is essential to achieving a “Smart City,” and has already worked on various collaborations, including linking LINE’s powerful user platform to other companies’ technologies, and helping them expand their activities in Fukuoka. Moving forward, we will continue to expand the scope of our co-creation projects even further.