I bought an electronic Suica Green Ticket at Shimbashi Station and rode to Akabane on a Takasaki Line train running through the Ueno-Tokyo Line. I photographed each step because JR East’s local Green Car can confuse even Japanese passengers on a first trip: buy the ticket on a compatible card such as Suica or a card-type PASMO, wait at the correct platform position, choose an unreserved seat, and tap that same card above the seat.
How to ride a JR East local Green Car
- 1Buy a Suica Green Ticket before boarding
Use a station or platform machine with a compatible physical card such as Suica or PASMO, or purchase through a supported mobile app.
- 2Board a Green Car and choose a red-light seat
Red means the unreserved seat is vacant; green means it is registered as occupied.
- 3Tap the same Suica or PASMO above your seat
Keep it on the reader until the seat light changes from red to green.
1. First, identify the type of Green Car
“Green Car” is not one single ticket system. This guide covers the unreserved Green Cars attached to some JR East local and rapid trains in and around Tokyo. These are the double-deck or single-level cars where a red light marks an available seat and a Suica Green Ticket can be registered at the reader above the seat.
Local-train Green Cars and Shinkansen Green Cars work differently
A local or rapid-train Green Car normally uses unreserved seating and the red/green lamp system explained below. A Shinkansen or limited express Green Car normally requires a reservation for a specific train, car, and seat. You do not use the local-train overhead Suica reader on a Shinkansen.
2. Which JR East trains have local Green Cars?
JR East currently lists local or rapid Green Car service on the following lines. Through-services can display more than one line name during the same journey, so check the departure board and the Green Car symbol on the train rather than relying only on the route color.
- Tokaido Line — including trains running through central Tokyo on the Ueno-Tokyo Line.
- Yokosuka Line — often through-running with the Sobu Rapid Line.
- Shonan-Shinjuku Line — north-south services through Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Yokohama.
- Ueno-Tokyo Line — through-services connecting the Tokaido side with the Utsunomiya, Takasaki, and Joban lines.
- Utsunomiya Line and Takasaki Line — including the Shimbashi-to-Akabane journey I photographed for this guide.
- Joban Line — check the individual train because service patterns vary.
- Sobu Line (Rapid) — including through-services toward the Yokosuka Line.
- Chuo Line (Rapid) and Ome Line — local Green Car service is available on eligible trains.
Confirm the Green Car symbol, car numbers, and formation on the station display or timetable before buying. Ordinary Green Cars are commonly cars 4 and 5 on the route I photographed, but formations and stopping positions differ by line and train.
3. Before you start: prepare a physical Suica
You need a physical Suica with enough stored value
The platform machine records the Green ticket directly onto your card. If you do not yet have one, see my step-by-step guide to buying a Suica in Japan first.
You still pay the ordinary train fare when you pass through the station gates. The Suica Green Ticket is an additional surcharge for riding in the Green Car. One card can carry a ticket for one passenger only.
No. This walkthrough specifically uses a physical Suica. JR East also accepts certain other physical IC cards—including PASMO, Kitaca, and TOICA—for Suica Green Tickets, and mobile users purchase through a supported app rather than placing the phone in this machine. Paper Green tickets also exist, but cost more.
4. Can you use PASMO for a JR East Green Car?
Yes—a card-type PASMO can be used for the same JR East local-train Green Car system shown in this guide. At a compatible Green Car ticket machine, place the PASMO in the card tray, buy the electronic “Suica Green Ticket,” and select your destination. After boarding, choose a red-light seat and touch that same PASMO to the reader above it until the light turns green.
| PASMO question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Can I buy the electronic Green ticket with PASMO? | Yes. JR East officially lists PASMO among the accepted IC cards, together with Suica, Kitaca, and TOICA. |
| Do I need a separate Suica? | No. Keep the Green ticket and the ordinary ride on the same PASMO you use at the ticket gate. |
| Which card do I tap above the seat? | The same PASMO onto which the Green ticket was loaded. |
| Can two passengers use one PASMO? | No. Each passenger needs their own basic fare and Green Car ticket. |
| Does Mobile PASMO work at the photographed machine? | No. PASMO states that Mobile PASMO cannot purchase a Green ticket at a Suica Green ticket machine. The photographed tray procedure is for a physical card. |
The machine may still display “Suica Green Car Ticket” even when you use an accepted card-type PASMO. Follow the same line, destination, seat-light, and overhead-reader steps shown below.
5. Buy the Suica Green Ticket at the station
I bought my ticket before boarding at Shimbashi Station. The dedicated machines can be easy to miss because they may stand on the platform rather than beside the ordinary ticket machines, so I photographed the machine and every screen I used.
Step 1: Find the Suica Green Car ticket machine
I did not receive a paper ticket. The machine wrote the travel date, section, and Green Car entitlement electronically to the Suica I had left in the tray. A card-type PASMO works the same way.
6. Find the correct Green Car boarding position
I checked the departure display to see whether my arriving train had 10 or 15 cars, then matched that formation to the floor Green Car marker. Green Cars are normally cars 4 and 5 on these services, but the place where those cars stop can shift with the train length.
A 10-car and a 15-car train may stop at different points on the same platform. The electronic departure board is the final check.
7. Board the Green Car and choose a red-light seat
When my train arrived, I checked the green clover-style Green Car mark beside the door, let passengers leave, and boarded. Seats are unreserved: the ticket lets you use the Green Car, but it does not reserve a particular seat.
The center of many Green Cars has upper- and lower-deck seating. Both levels are valid, so choose whichever has space. The single-level sections near the ends are useful if you need an overhead luggage rack; JR East says these cars do not have a dedicated oversized-luggage area.
8. Sit down and tap Suica or PASMO above your seat
After choosing a red-light seat, I touched the same Suica I had used at the platform machine to the reader above it and waited for the indicator to change from red to green. A card-type PASMO follows the same process.
I kept my Suica easy to reach until the light changed. When I arrived at Akabane, I checked the seat, rack, floor, and seat pocket for my phone and bags, then used the same IC card at the exit gate normally.
9. Moving seats and reader problems
If you want to move to another seat
On the same train, JR East’s current instruction is simply to touch the ticket-loaded Suica to the reader above the new seat. You do not need to clear the old seat first. If you transfer to another eligible train in the same direction without leaving the ticket gates, touch before getting off the first train and touch again above the new seat after boarding.
If the light does not turn green
Try the same physical card used to purchase the Green ticket and hold it steadily over the reader. If you are certain the purchase completed but the light stays red, keep the card ready and speak to the Green Attendant when they come through. You may remain in the seat while the valid ticket is checked, but do not ignore the problem if you are unsure whether the purchase succeeded.
10. What if you boarded without buying first?
You can buy a Green Car ticket from the Green Attendant on board. Tell them your boarding station and destination. However, the higher regular Green ticket fare applies, and the Green Car still does not guarantee a seat.
¥750 before boarding with Suica · ¥1,010 at the regular fare
I paid the ¥750 advance Suica fare. The current official difference is ¥260 for this journey of up to 50 km; the regular fare applies to a paper ticket bought at the station as well as a ticket bought on board.
Buying before boarding is cheaper and avoids explaining the journey after departure. A Green ticket is required even if you stand in the aisle or deck.
11. Current JR East local Green Car fares
These surcharges are added to the ordinary fare. I checked them against JR East’s official table on September 26, 2026. Adult and child Green charges are the same.
| Distance | Suica Green Ticket | Regular fare: paper or on board |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 50 km | ¥750 | ¥1,010 |
| Up to 100 km | ¥1,000 | ¥1,260 |
| 101 km or more | ¥1,550 | ¥1,810 |
12. Shinkansen and limited express Green Cars are different
This guide is for JR East local and rapid trains. Green Cars on Shinkansen and most limited express trains use assigned seats. Buy a reservation for a specific train, car, and seat; do not look for a red seat light or use the local-train overhead-tap procedure.
| JR East local / rapid Green Car | Shinkansen / limited express Green Car | |
|---|---|---|
| Seat | Unreserved; choose a red-light seat | Usually reserved; use the assigned car and seat |
| Purchase | Suica Green Ticket, supported mobile app, or paper ticket | Reservation website, reserved-seat machine, or JR ticket office |
| After boarding | Tap the ticket-loaded Suica above the seat | Show or retain the reservation; no local Green Car seat tap |
13. Japan Rail Pass Green vs Ordinary: what is the difference?
The words Green and Ordinary also appear on the nationwide Japan Rail Pass, but this is a choice of pass class—not the Suica/PASMO purchase method above. A Green-type pass covers eligible ordinary and Green cars, while an Ordinary-type pass covers eligible ordinary cars without an extra fee. The official Japan Rail Pass accommodation table marks Green Cars on local and rapid trains as included with the Green Pass and available only with an additional charge for Ordinary Pass holders.
| Japan Rail Pass: Green | Japan Rail Pass: Ordinary | |
|---|---|---|
| Eligible ordinary cars | Included | Included |
| Eligible Green Cars | Included under the pass rules | Additional Green Car charge is required |
| Best for | Travelers planning repeated premium-class journeys | Travelers mainly using standard-class seats |
| Seat reservation | Reserve a specific seat when the train’s Green Car is reserved seating | Reserve ordinary-class seats where available |
| Use the PASMO procedure above? | Not as your pass entitlement. Show/use the rail pass and obtain any required reservation or supplemental ticket under the pass rules. | |
Train-specific exclusions and extra charges still exist. Check the official accommodation table for your train, and reserve a seat when required. If you only have an Ordinary Pass and want this local Green Car, ask a JR ticket office which additional Green ticket you need before boarding.
14. Useful Japanese
| Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| この電車にグリーン車はありますか？ | Kono densha ni gurīn-sha wa arimasu ka? | Does this train have a Green Car? |
| Suicaグリーン券を買いたいです | Suica gurīn-ken o kaitai desu | I would like to buy a Suica Green Ticket. |
| この席は空いていますか？ | Kono seki wa aite imasu ka? | Is this seat available? |
| ランプが変わりません | Ranpu ga kawarimasen | The light does not change. |
| グリーン車は何号車ですか？ | Gurīn-sha wa nangōsha desu ka? | Which car is the Green Car? |
| 新橋から赤羽までです | Shimbashi kara Akabane made desu | I am traveling from Shimbashi to Akabane. |
15. Quick FAQ
Can I use PASMO for a JR East local Green Car?
Yes. A card-type PASMO is accepted for the Suica Green Car system. Buy the electronic Green ticket at a compatible machine, then touch the same PASMO to the reader above your seat. Mobile PASMO cannot be used to purchase a Green ticket at the photographed Suica Green ticket machine.
Is a Japan Rail Pass Green Pass the same as buying a Suica Green Ticket?
No. The Green Pass is a nationwide Japan Rail Pass class. A Suica Green Ticket is a separate electronic surcharge for eligible JR East local and rapid Green Cars. Follow the rules for the ticket or pass you are actually using.
Can an Ordinary Japan Rail Pass use a Green Car?
Not at no extra charge. The official accommodation table marks Green Cars as requiring an additional fee for Ordinary Pass holders. Ask JR staff for the correct supplemental ticket for your train.
Which JR East lines have local Green Cars?
JR East lists the Tokaido, Yokosuka, Chuo Rapid, Ome, Takasaki, Utsunomiya, Joban, Sobu Rapid, Shonan-Shinjuku, and Ueno-Tokyo lines. Some trains operate without Green Cars, so check the live departure display or timetable.
Is a JR East local Green Car seat guaranteed?
No. It is a non-reserved service. You buy the right to use the Green Car, then choose an available seat. If every seat is occupied, speak to the Green Attendant before moving to an ordinary car.
What do the red and green lights mean?
On JR East local Green Cars, red marks a vacant/unregistered seat and green marks a seat registered to a Suica Green Ticket.
Do I tap the old seat before moving?
Not when moving within the same train. JR East’s current instruction is to tap at the new seat. When transferring to another eligible train, touch before leaving the first train and again after boarding the next.
Can I buy the local Green ticket after boarding?
Yes, from the Green Attendant, but the higher regular fare applies. For a trip of up to 50 km, that is currently ¥1,010 rather than the ¥750 Suica Green fare.
Can two people share one Suica Green Ticket?
No. Each traveler needs the appropriate basic fare and Green Car ticket.
What happens if the Green Car is full?
A Green ticket does not guarantee a seat, and standing in the Green Car still requires one. Ask the Green Attendant before moving to an ordinary car; JR East explains that the attendant can provide the certificate needed for a refund.
Can I use Mobile Suica in the photographed platform machine?
No. The machine shown asks for a physical card. Purchase a mobile Suica Green Ticket in the supported app before boarding.
I took the walkthrough photographs at Shimbashi Station and aboard the JR East local Green Car I used to reach Akabane. I checked the routes, procedures, accepted IC cards, seat-light meanings, transfer instructions, and fares against JR East’s official Green Cars on Local Trains guide, local Green Car route guide, and Suica Green Car system notes. I cross-checked PASMO card compatibility with JR East’s official IC-card FAQ, and the Mobile PASMO limitation with PASMO’s official train-use guide. I checked Japan Rail Pass Green and Ordinary coverage against the official train accommodation table on October 23, 2026. Interfaces, train formations, platform positions, routes, fares, and pass conditions can change; check the live display and current official rules.
