Distracted walkers in Japan are a real safety risk. My mother knows firsthand.

51吃瓜网 / Society / First person

Distracted walkers in Japan are a real safety risk. My mother knows firsthand.

In Tokyo and other major Japanese cities, <i>aruki-sumaho</i> — walking while using a smartphone — has become a persistent safety concern as commuters navigate crowded stations and sidewalks while focused on their devices.

In Tokyo and other major Japanese cities, aruki-sumaho — walking while using a smartphone — has become a persistent safety concern as commuters navigate crowded stations and sidewalks while focused on their devices. | Johan Brooks

By Alex K.T. Martin
STAFF WRITER

Jun 21, 2026

At around 8:45 a.m. on Friday, June 5, my mother was knocked over by a man staring at his smartphone as he exited the ticket gates of the Seibu Ikebukuro Line at Ikebukuro, one of the busiest train stations in Tokyo. My mother, 78, has a bad left knee and uses a cane whenever she goes out. She struck the right side of her face on the ground.

By the time I arrived about 15 minutes later — we had planned to meet on the platform before boarding an express train — she was sitting in a Seibu staff room, assisted by station employees. Her right forehead was swollen and would soon force her right eye shut. A three-centimeter laceration beneath her eye was bleeding heavily.

“I told him to watch out and raised my hand to keep my distance, but it was too late,” she told me.