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5. Nagasaki Transportation Tips - Making a Budget for School Travel

*Buy a Smart Card and use the free school bus after class
From Sumiyoshi: 10,000 yen over the course of the semester
Between Sumiyoshi and Cocowalk: 21,000 yen (board bus at or north of Urakami Station)
Further south: 25,460 yen (buy a streetcar pass)

Nagasaki City buses are inexpensive compared to others in Japan, but even a low fare like 140 yen adds up quickly over the course of a semester. To ensure that you have enough money to travel to school every day, set aside a sufficient amount at the beginning of the semester.
If you live in Sumiyoshi, use a Smart Card, and ride the free bus home every day, you can travel to and from school for 10,000 yen over the course of the semester. If you live between Sumiyoshi and Cocowalk Mall, you can travel for 21,000 yen (but it will cost about 3,000 yen more if you use the Cocowalk bus stop, so walk north for less than a minute and board at Urakami Station). If you live further south and take the streetcar to reach the bus, get a streetcar pass and catch the bus in Sumiyoshi for 25,460 yen.

If you will live in the same location for the entire semester, you may follow these steps to make a more precise calculation of your school travel expenses:

1. Start with a base travel rate of 10,640 yen, which assumes you have first period class every day and will take the city bus from Sumiyoshi (140 yen one-way from Sumiyoshi to NUFS * 76 days = 10,640 yen).

2. Subtract 2,100 yen for each day of the week on which you do not have first period class and will take the free school bus from Sumiyoshi. If you do not have first period on Thursday, subtract an additional 140 yen because there is an extra day of class scheduled on Thursday.

3a. If you board the city bus from Iwayabashi (岩屋橋) or Ohashi (大橋): add 150 yen for each day of the week with first period. Add another 10 yen(!) if you have Thursday first period. Then add 9,120 yen for the streetcar ride home from Sumiyoshi.

3b. If you board between Matsuyama-machi (松山町) and Cocowalk Mall: add 600 yen for each day of the week with first period. (Remember not to board at Cocowalk Mall; this would double your added cost, and the Urakami Station stop is less than a one-minute walk away.) Add another 40 yen if you have Thursday first period. Then add 9,120 yen for the streetcar ride home from Sumiyoshi.

4. Use this table and your total so far to determine how much money you will need to place on your Smart Card:

Calculated Need ->	Smart Card	Calculated Need ->	Smart Card
5,201 - 6,300 yen	6,000 yen	14,001-15,100 yen	14,000 yen
6,301 - 7,400 yen	7,000 yen	15,101-16,200 yen	15,000 yen
7,401 - 8,500 yen	8,000 yen	16,201-17,300 yen	16,000 yen
8,501 - 9,600 yen	9,000 yen	17,301-18,400 yen	17,000 yen
9,601-10,700 yen	10,000 yen	18,401-19,500 yen	18,000 yen
10,701-11,800 yen	11,000 yen	19,501-20,600 yen	19,000 yen
11,801-12,900 yen	12,000 yen	20,601-21,700 yen	20,000 yen
12,901-14,000 yen	13,000 yen	21,701-22,800 yen	21,000 yen

5. If you live south of Cocowalk Mall and take the streetcar to and from Sumiyoshi on the way to school, add 15,460 yen (11,350 yen three-month pass + 4,110 yen one-month pass).

This total will give you the minimum cost of traveling to and from the university during the semester.

Example: Home stay in Matsuyama-machi, no first period on Friday

1. 10,640 yen
2. 10,640 yen - 2,100 yen = 8,540 yen
3b. 8,540 yen + 4*600 yen + 40 yen + 9,120 yen = 20,100 yen
4. 20,100 yen = 19,000 yen Smart Card

Finally, remember that while taking the free bus home every day may require you to wait after class, it will save you more than 10,000 yen over the course of the semester.