Shibuya Crossing

Shibuya Crossing, or Shibuya Scramble Crossing, is a popular scramble crossing in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan.[1] It is located in front of the Shibuya Station Hachikō exit and stops vehicles in all directions to allow pedestrians to inundate the entire intersection. The statue of Hachikō, between the station and the intersection, is a common meeting place and almost always crowded.

Shibuya Crossing
Scramble crossing
Shibuya scramble crossing at night
LocationShibuya, Tokyo, Japan
Coordinates: 35°39′34″N 139°42′02″E
Shibuya Crossing under the state of emergency for coronavirus pandemic in 2020

Three large TV screens mounted on nearby buildings overlook the crossing, as well as many advertising signs. The Starbucks store overlooking the crossing is also one of the busiest in the world. Its heavy traffic and inundation of advertising have led to it being compared to the Times Square intersection in New York City and Piccadilly Circus intersection in London. Shibuya Crossing is the world’s busiest pedestrian crossing, with as many as 2,500 people crossing at a time.[2] Tokyo-based architecture professor Julian Worrall has said Shibuya Crossing is "a great example of what Tokyo does best when it's not trying."[3]

Shibuya Crossing is often featured in movies and television shows which take place in Tokyo, such as Lost in Translation,[4] The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, and Resident Evil: Afterlife and Retribution, as well as on domestic and international news broadcasts. The iconic video screen featured in the above movies, in particular Lost in Translation with its 'walking dinosaur' scene, was taken down for a period of time and replaced with static advertising, although it resumed operation in July 2013.[5] Contemporary British painter Carl Randall (who spent 10 years living in Tokyo as an artist) depicted the area in his large artwork 'Shibuya', exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery in London 2013.,[6][7][8] Scramble Crossing is a major location in the video game The World Ends With You, which is set entirely in the neighbourhood of Shibuya.

The crossing was featured in the 2016 Summer Olympics closing ceremony to promote the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.[9][10]

References
  1. Murray Buechner, Maryanne. "Tokyo: 10 Things To Do". Time: Travel. Archived from the original on August 19, 2019.
  2. "The World's Busiest Pedestrian Crossing". WorldAtlas. Retrieved 2020-04-13.
  3. Nakagawa, Ulara. "15 sights that make Tokyo so fascinating". CNNGo.com. Archived from the original on 1 November 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2011.
  4. Glionna, John M. (2011-05-23). "Japan's orderly Shibuya Scramble". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-08-28.
  5. 渋谷駅ハチ公口交差点前「ＱＦＲＯＮＴ」ビル壁面の大型ビジョン「Ｑ’Ｓ ＥＹＥ」をリニューアル！(2013/7/11). Tokyu. 2013-11-07. Archived from the original on 2013-09-18. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
  6. BBC World Service: World Update. 'Carl Randall - Painting the faces in Japan's crowded cities'., BBC, 2016
  7. 'Carl Randall's Japan - the best BP Travel Award Exhibition ever!'., Making a Mark, London, 2012
  8. 'Shibuya drawing'., Carl Randall artist website, 2012
  9. Palazzo, Chiara (August 22, 2016). "Shinzo Abe emerges from a green pipe disguised as Super Mario during Rio Closing Ceremony". Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  10. Samuelson, Kate (August 22, 2016). "Shinzo Abe Dresses as Super Mario for Rio Closing Ceremony". TIME.com. Retrieved August 22, 2016.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.