Life on the line: Inquiries into the daily struggles of urban communities along commuter train tracks in Tokyo through the social space of ‘eki-mae’

Modern cities like Tokyo heavily depend on transportation systems like railroads, streets and waterways to keep people and goods moving from one place to another. But the citizens living along these train lines are often overlooked and their views are neglected in political processes and research. In contrast, this paper approaches these urban communities, and the physical as well as social movements within them, from the viewpoint of their interactions with and around the train tracks, and the station area. Especially the concept of 'Eki-mae' [in front of a station] is addressed, because it is more than a simple direction or location but a home: It is a social space and institution that serves different purposes and is used by a broad variety of beings. It is a waiting area, a meeting point and place to disperse, but also allows for intended and unintended encounters, convivial gatherings and conflicts and opens a space of possibilities. Using multisensory fieldwork-data which address smellscapes as well as sonic traces and haptic stimuli, I portray different locations in Tokyo and discuss common features, peculiarities and trajectories. The change of social environment and role as well as transportation mode and vehicle are deliberated through the everyday practices of waiting, meeting and leaving. By doing so, I connect the findings of recent studies regarding rail transport and urban mobility with a sensory aware anthropology to contextualize the interwoven and conflicting state of humans, machines and places to reflect about changes and pressing problems in these neighborhoods.