Five kilometres an hour, the face of the town

Running from the day the town opened

In March 2025, iino type-S712 was introduced to coincide with the opening of TAKANAWA GATEWAY CITY. Its top speed is 5 km/h, and both the way you ride it and the way it looks are very different from any vehicle before it.

The angled layout

To run on sidewalks, the vehicle had to fit within 700 × 1200 mm, as set by Japan's Road Traffic Act. Within that limited footprint, we wanted three people to keep their own personal space while getting on and off freely. The result is the angled, dog-leg layout.

Furniture-like presence in pedestrian space

We wrapped the bulky body in timber. The warmth of wood reassures people walking by, and when the vehicle stops it becomes part of the streetscape, like a piece of furniture.

Touch to stop, stroke and it sings

There is no destination to choose and no steering wheel. To get off, simply keep touching the "stop" sensor. iino slows gently so you can step off safely wherever you like. A soft, xylophone-like sound plays as it stops, turning the stop into a moment in the experience.

Stroke the touch sensor and iino answers with a call, almost like an animal. Calls echo back and forth around the town — and when switched to event announcements or town guides, the vehicle itself becomes a medium.

The face of the town, before it is a vehicle

Many visitors say what stays with them is not just riding iino, but coming across it in the town. Some come to the town just to ride it; others walk around looking for it. iino carries banners for events and sponsors, sometimes lights lanterns, and tells the town's stories by voice — a moving stage set that brings stories into the streets.

At AIM, the information centre beside the station, boarding, charging, storage and information are brought together in one place. Resident information staff handle both visitor guidance and the remote monitoring and on-site operation of iino.