Taxis in Rural Japan: How to Call One and What a Ride Costs

A ride outside the cities is booked by phone with a local company, and the fare is an initial fare that is always charged, with distance and slow-driving time added on top. The Shikoku District Transport Bureau divides fares broadly into a distance-based fare and a time-based fare, and the sections below show how each one is counted and what it comes to in a range of regions.

This guide draws on pages published by taxi companies and prefectural taxi associations in Sapporo, Chitose, Otaru, Aomori, Morioka, Kumamoto, Kagoshima and Okinawa, by tourism offices for Miyajima, Goto, Oki and Shodoshima, and by the Shikoku District Transport Bureau. It does not describe other operators or rules for the whole country.

How to Get a Taxi Outside the Cities

1. Sapporo. Taxis can be booked by phone through the Sapporo radio center of Sawayaka Radio Center, part of the Showa Group.
2. Chitose. Taxis can be booked by phone with a Showa Group company in Chitose.
3. Miyajima. From spots on Miyajima other than the pier, you call for a car by phone.
4. Oki. In Oki-no-shima Town, the sightseeing taxis take reservations by phone.
5. Time-based fare. If you want the car charged by how long it is used rather than by distance, you request the time-based fare in advance.

How the Meter Counts the Fare

• Initial fare. The Shikoku District Transport Bureau defines the fare shown on the outside of the car as the initial fare, a basic fare that is always charged when you ride.
• Slow traffic. In the Shikoku District Transport Bureau explanation, time is converted into distance and added to the fare when congestion or similar slows the car to nine kilometers per hour or less.
• Sapporo traffic area. For a standard car, Sapporo Kotsu adds 100 yen for every 1 minute 40 seconds of operating time at 10 km/h or less.
• Aomori Prefecture. For a standard car in Aomori Prefecture, the time-and-distance fare adds 100 yen for every 1 minute 35 seconds of travel at 10 km/h or slower.
• Late-night and early-morning surcharge. In Aomori Prefecture, the late-night and early-morning surcharge applies from ten at night until five the next morning and adds 20 percent to the fare.
• Winter surcharge in Aomori Prefecture. In Aomori Prefecture, the winter surcharge applies from December 1 to the end of February and adds 20 percent to the fare.
• Winter surcharge at Toho Kotsu. At Toho Kotsu in Sapporo, the winter surcharge period runs from December 10 to March 26 of the following year.

In the Sapporo traffic area, Sapporo Kotsu also charges for waiting, at 100 yen every 1 minute 40 seconds. At Morioka Taxi, the waiting fare for a standard car is 100 yen for every period of up to 1 minute 40 seconds.

Fare Examples by Region

Region	Charge	Amount	Source
Sapporo traffic area	Initial fare, standard car	600 yen for the first 1,050 m	Sapporo Kotsu
Sapporo traffic area	Added fare, standard car	100 yen every 272 m	Sapporo Kotsu
Hokkaido fare area C	Initial fare and added fare, standard car	740 yen for the first 1.4 km, then 100 yen every 293 m	Sawayaka Radio Center, Showa Group
Otaru and Sapporo	Initial fare, standard car	600 yen for the first 1.05 km	Takahashi Jumbo Taxi (sightseeing taxis)
Otaru and Sapporo	Added fare, standard car	100 yen every 272 m	Takahashi Jumbo Taxi (sightseeing taxis)
Aomori Prefecture	Initial fare, standard car	680 to 700 yen for the first 0.9 km	Aomori Prefecture Taxi Association
Morioka	Initial fare	700 yen for a standard car, 900 yen for a jumbo	Morioka Taxi
Morioka	Added fare, standard car	100 yen every 266 m	Morioka Taxi
Kumamoto Station	Initial fare, standard car	700 yen for the first 1.3 km	Taxis at Kumamoto Station
Kumamoto Station	Added fare, standard car	100 yen every 347 m	Taxis at Kumamoto Station
Kagoshima Prefecture	Initial fare, standard car	770 yen up to 1.3 km	Kagoshima Prefecture Taxi Association
Kagoshima Prefecture	Added fare, standard car	50 yen every 145 m	Kagoshima Prefecture Taxi Association
Okinawa	Fare, standard car	600 yen, with 100 yen added	Okinawa Story

Pick-Up, Booking and Hourly Charter Charges

Charge	Amount	Source
Pick-up charge, Sapporo	300 yen	Sapporo Kotsu
Timed dispatch charge, Sapporo	800 yen	SK Taxi Group
Hourly charter, first 30 minutes, Sapporo traffic area	3,900 yen	Sapporo Kotsu
Hourly charter, each further 30 minutes, Sapporo traffic area	3,900 yen	Sapporo Kotsu
Sightseeing time extension, standard car, per 30 minutes, Sapporo	3,900 yen	Sapporo Kotsu
Charter for 30 minutes, Morioka	3,530 yen for a standard car, 5,880 yen for a jumbo	Morioka Taxi
Charter for 1 hour, Morioka	7,060 yen for a standard car, 11,760 yen for a jumbo	Morioka Taxi
Hourly fare, standard car, per 30 minutes, Aomori Prefecture	3,640 to 3,740 yen	Aomori Prefecture Taxi Association
Hourly charter, jumbo, 1 hour, Otaru and Sapporo	13,580 yen	Takahashi Jumbo Taxi
Hourly charter, jumbo, 30 minutes, Otaru and Sapporo	6,790 yen	Takahashi Jumbo Taxi

• Booked by the day before. At Sawayaka Radio Center of the Showa Group, the charter fare applies to bookings made in advance and confirmed by the day before, and asking the driver when you board does not switch a regular ride to the charter fare.
• Two-hour minimum. At Sawayaka Radio Center of the Showa Group, a charter has a two-hour minimum, and use shorter than that is billed as the full two-hour block.

Islands and Small Towns

• Miyajima. The Miyajima Tourism Association lists two island taxis, and they cannot be booked.
• Itsukushima Shrine. The fare from Miyajima Pier to Itsukushima Shrine is approximately 660 to 750 yen.
• Daisho-in and Daigan-ji. The fare from Miyajima Pier to Daisho-in and Daigan-ji is approximately 750 to 840 yen.
• Miyajima Aquarium. The fare from Miyajima Pier to Miyajima Aquarium is approximately 930 to 1,020 yen.
• Paying on Miyajima. On Miyajima, taxis take cash, credit card and QR code payment.
• Fukue on Goto. From the Fukue urban area to Fukue Airport, the approximate fare is 1,320 yen or more.
• Oki-no-shima Town. For the sightseeing taxis of Oki-no-shima Town, the hourly guideline fare is 7,400 yen for a standard taxi and 9,800 yen for a jumbo taxi.
• Shodoshima. The Tonosho Town page lists a local company for Shodoshima with its phone numbers.

Related Guides

For related questions, see our guide to the last buses of the day, our guide to cash and ATMs, our rural transport guide and our guide to IC cards on rural lines. Check official information before visiting. If your trip starts in Tokyo, you can browse day trips from Tokyo.