This bus transforms into a train

An accessible English dub of this video is available. Plus, as there was (unusually) room for it in this video, there's also a version with audio description. You can turn those on in your device's player settings. Both are experimental and use an AI-generated voice, so they're a long way from perfect; I can't guarantee they'll be available for future videos, or even for this one long-term! But hopefully it's a step in the right direction.

Local producer: Yasuharu Matsuno at Mind Architect
Camera: Julian Domanski

(you can find contact details and social links there too)

[Sarahbryson]

Gives ‘rail replacment bus service’ a new meaning

[Namisar]

That song it plays when it transforms is adorable and I bet as the driver you'd get sick of it real quick.

[duseylicious]

“To attract the kind of tourists who want to ride on a road/rail vehicle.” Then we see Tom’s huge smile. “It’s me. I’m that tourist.”

[ThioJoe]

I just noticed the option for the "English Dubbed" audio track which dubs the translated parts. Definitely appreciated because I often am doing other stuff while watching the video and would otherwise have to read the translation. There's also an "English Descriptive" audio track option for those with impaired vision.

[NaudVanDalen]

The effort that Tom Scott does for a 5 minute video is amazing. He went to Japan and interviewed the Chief of General Affairs of the Asa Coast Railway and added a bunch of extra camera shots and drone shots plus added subtitles and 2 extra audio tracks (dubbed and audio description). Other people would have just turned on their camera and filmed some of this in a less interesting way without drone shots or an interview and somehow still end up dragging it out for over 15 minutes, let alone doing effort to add subtitles (instead using automatically generated subtitles), let alone adding audio tracks, which I've never seen on ANY other video.

[Case]

This would make a good question for Tom’s Lateral podcast. “Which Japanese train line has hundreds of derailments per year?”

[jojodroid]

Tom's never going to stop finding more Gadgetbahns, is he?

[MaxLennon]

2:20 The "train mode activate" soundtrack is my favorite part of the whole thing. Totally unnecessary, but the designers thought "might as well make this 15 second process more fun for the passengers!"

[TheIppoippo]

Can I just say, the representative you interviewed from Asa Coast Railway, major thumbs up for knowing how to do his job! He spoke clearly and slowly, and added in appropriate hand gestures, making it easy for non-native Japanese speakers/learners to understand. That's how you do PR & Marketing!

Something for me to aspire to when the roles are reversed and I'm speaking English to Japanese colleagues etc etc.

[kingjulian]

I have been learning Japanese for over two years now, and explanations like this are the perfect listening comprehensions, formal, clearly spoken, subtitles for checking again, perfect. Thanks Tom, good video as always

[pflaumenketchup]

I love how Tom always manages to show something that I would never hear and probably not care about, yet presents it in a way that makes it interesting

[dankdreamz]

The guy you're interviewing is incredibly good. He speaks Japanese slowly in a way that is easily understandable.

[NotJustBikes]

I've never been more jealous of a Tom Scott video. BRB, checking flights to Japan.

[safe-keeper]

Tom buying a plushie of the freaking bus is the cutest thing I've seen in a long time 😄

[hallamhal]

I love how absolutely everything has a jingle in Japan

[peteranderson]

I've never seen anyone so happy to be in the DMV before.

[yyyy]

Fun fact about the DMV: The vehicle was originally prototyped and tested by JR Hokkaido, the privatized national rail corporation that operates in Japan's northern most prefecture. The project was eventually scrapped as it was too impractical to use for regular service, and many thought it would end up as a failed invention that went nowhere. It was then quite the suprise when the Asa Kagan Railway said that they will be replacing their fleet with DMVs, the failed invention now had a practical use

[Michaelthekiwi]

So cool - plus (as someone learning Japanese) I appreciate that Ootani-San spoke slowly and clearly so I could understand him - or least get the meaning of what he was saying. I'm only up to two years of studying, but covered up the subtitles as a challenge to myself.

[LHyoutube]

2:07 – I love that they seemingly allocated a viewing area for all of the rail nerds! 😂

[gidikalchhauser]

I love that Mr Naoyoshi makes his hand gestures so that his opposite can understand them (1:29). That's something I picked up when tutoring math students. It requires both a high degree of freedom of movement and a high level of conceptual abstraction - all inspired by a deep feeling of "the goal of my communication is your understanding and nothing else".