An umbrella sharing service called "iKASA" has been started mainly at stations in Kobe, with the aim of reducing their environmental impact by preventing the use of disposable products and revitalizing the local economy by making it easier to travel on rainy days.
The service's planning was a collaborative effort between the Kobe municipal government, Hanshin Electric Railway Co.and a start-up company in Tokyo.
A total of 2,000 umbrellas will be installed at 90 locations, including commercial facilities such as Kobe Harborland umie and the stations of the Hanshin Electric Railway, the Kobe City Subway, Port Liner and Rokko Liner. The umbrellas are all blue in color to invoke images of the sea of Kobe and is also decorated with a Kobe tartan pattern.
While the use of one of these umbrellas costs 70 yen for 24 hours, they will be available for free during the campaign period lasting until July 31.
To register as a service member, the service's app must be download to your smartphone. On the app, the location of a nearby umbrella stand is displayed on a map on the screen, and by scanning a QR code, the umbrella stand will unlock. Your borrowed umbrella can be returned at any iKASA umbrella stand.
In order to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus infection, the handle of each umbrella is disinfected with alcohol the day following a rainy day or during regular maintenance twice a month.
"Amid the shrinking economy due to the new coronavirus, we'd like to encourage many people to go out and bring back the bustle [of the city]," a Kobe municipal government official said.
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