Warning: massive oversimplifications ahead; please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong somewhere!
Just over 100 years ago in the United Kingdom, the railway company landscape was a mess. From national cross-country networks, to suburban commuter routes, to inner city metro lines, over 120 different railway companies co-existed and competed with each other for business. This led to phenomena such as rival companies constructing entirely separate railway stations to serve the same area; multiple tracks being laid down when sharing would have been the overall more efficient option; and passengers needing to switch between different companies' lines to make a single journey, often requiring a short walk between the different companies' stations. Then, mass consolidation happened, encouraged by government legislation. Companies were merged; unnecessary duplicate stations were closed; lines were redrawn and made more efficient; passenger journeys were improved.
Today in Japan, it seems that the abundance of public and private railway companies has created a landscape with some similarities to the early 1900s United Kingdom, particularly in the largest urban centres where territorial overlap is most obvious. For example, even in the Kyoto area where the railway network is much simpler than in say Tokyo or Osaka, there are JR lines, local metro lines, and private company lines, all operating alongside one another. There are different companies' stations with a lengthy interchange, and even some stations where there is no interchange at all, such as JR-Uji and Keihan-Uji. This is by no means a complaint – I have enjoyed riding the railways in Japan more than in any other country – but I am intrigued: why are Japanese railway companies and infrastructures still so fragmented, and how have they managed to avoid consolidation?
by Lamlash