Train Ticket Vending Machine

Japan is definitely the land of vending machines. I think the statistic is something along the lines of, 1 vending machine for every 10 people? That's a lot of vending machines. And they don't just sell drinks! There's food ones, ones for groceries like eggs and miso, and of course ones containing items of a more sexual nature.

So, of course there would be a vending machine for train tickets! I'm not talking about the ones at the station either, where you can buy tickets as well as charge your card. I'm talking about standalone ticket vending machines that have buttons to make your selections.

You may be asking what the point of using these machines, versus your standard IC card or a station-issued ticket. Well, the main reason for using these machines is that the tickets are sold at a discounted price. This is prominently advertised on the machine itself in hopes of luring people in.

This particular machine is located a few blocks away from Hiyoshi Station on the Tokyu-Toyoko line. So, the tickets sold here aren't for anywhere. They're for stations and lines nearby (in this case, being the Toyoko Line, Minato Mirai Line, and the Metro). However, I have also seen these machines in Kawasaki and Osaka Station too.

As you can see, there are only so many routes available. And, there are only a limited number of tickets. You can see that a majority of the tickets, especially the popular routes, are sold out.

It may seem a bit sketchy buying tickets like this. However, I do know that it works and I've successfully used these kinds of tickets numerous times before. The savings isn't much, but it does add up. 

I'm not sure who operates these machines, or what the purpose of offering these tickets at a slightly lower cost is. Do any of you know?