Manhole Cover Culture of Japan

Manhole covers have become a bright city card in Japan. Not only because they have colorful designs on it, and give them various commemorative significance. There are about 95 percents cities adopt special design on manhole covers in 1780 municipality in Japan. Besides pattern designs, there are many other advantages for manhole covers in Japan. For example, manhole covers is one of the big city noise sources. But this problem has been solved perfectly. In 1970s, because of the public protests the noise, the manufacturers improved manhole cover shape. They made the original cylindrical into a cone, and the vertical thickness direction changed into inclined angle of inclination, thus enhances the degree of agreement with the road, successfully solves the problem of noise. There are some diamonds on the middle of manhole cover in Tokyo Metropolitan. The place names are on each cover of the diamonds, indicating directions for passerby. There is a “manhole cover association” in Tokyo, which is formed by thirty two companies. It is a professional agent for protecting and studying manhole covers in whole Japan. Their research shows that these fashionable manhole covers appears in modern time.

Do you have more enthusiasm for manhole covers after knowing the story like me? Not only it is a protector of underground, it is a lubricant of life.