Two million people will come to worship in the first three days of the new year! How does Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine use AI to solve the "tourism chaos"?

Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, is not only one of the most representative tourist destinations in Kyushu, but also the main palace of Tenmangu Shrine nationwide. It is famous for enshrining Sugawara no Michizane, the god of learning. Attracting millions of worshipers every January, it is a holy place where people pray for academic progress and New Year blessings. It is expected that the number of worshipers in the first three days of January 2025 will exceed 2 million, which is 30 times the local city's population and accounting for 1/4 of the annual tourist arrivals.

Although its cultural reputation attracts countless tourists, the huge flow of people also brings serious challenges. From traffic congestion to garbage disposal, Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine has long been facing the problem of "tourism chaos". In recent years, during certain times, the short 6-kilometer journey from the Dazaifu Exit of the Kyushu Expressway to Tenmangu Shrine may take 1.5 hours. Even because of the popularization of GPS navigation, self-driving tourists drive into narrow alleys in residential areas, squeezing the living space of local residents.

Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine has taken various measures to reduce the stress of sightseeing

In order to deal with the increasingly serious traffic and crowd problems, Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine has joined hands with the city government to introduce a number of measures.

Real-time traffic monitoring

25 live cameras are installed at 15 key locations in the city to transmit traffic images in real time and update every 5 to 10 minutes. The public can go to the "Traffic Information Guidance System" (交通情報案内システム) to check real-time traffic conditions to reduce traffic pressure.

AI crowd prediction model

Use AI technology to analyze historical pedestrian flow data and current real-time traffic to predict the congestion level of the shrine in the next 6 days. Visitors can follow the recommendations to choose a more comfortable time period to spread out the crowds.

Parking lot real-time information

Provide real-time usage status of 14 major parking lots around Tenmangu Shrine to avoid vehicle entry and paralysis of surrounding traffic.

crowd control

From 10 pm on December 31st to the next year when the crowds are less crowded, Tenmangu Shrine will restrict the access of worshipers to the "Taiko-bashi Bridge". And guide people to take detours to avoid possible dangers caused by overcrowding on the bridge.

Collaborate with public transportation

The city government appeals to the public to take public transportation such as the "New Year's Eve Temporary Train" operated by West Japan Railway Company and the Dazaifu Direct Express during the New Year period. The public is encouraged to make more use of public transportation to disperse the flow of worshipers and further reduce vehicle pressure in urban areas.

These management methods not only effectively alleviate traffic pressure, but also enhance people's worship experience. In addition, Tenmangu Shrine cooperates with local residents to launch a "locally friendly and environmentally sustainable tourism" initiative, calling on worshipers to pay attention to environmental protection.

Tourism chaos spreads everywhere: What's the next step for Japan's tourism management?

Not only Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, but also many popular attractions in Japan are facing similar challenges as the number of tourists visiting Japan increases. For example, in the old street of Kyoto, due to the influx of too many tourists, historical buildings have been damaged and local residents have been inconvenienced; in Arakurayama Sengen Park under Mount Fuji, due to too many tourists, the roads around the park are narrow, often causing traffic jams. There have even been rental vehicle collisions.

Kamakura, Kanagawa, which became a pilgrimage site due to "Slam Dunk", also suffered from traffic congestion and garbage problems due to the large influx of movie fans. Additional manpower has been deployed locally and the monitoring system will be activated on December 6, 2024.

The hosting of the Osaka World Expo in 2025 and the possible relaxation of visa policies between China and Japan are expected to further increase the number of tourists visiting Japan. In order to deal with the problem of excessive tourism, various places in Japan have adopted measures such as decentralized tourism, levying tourism taxes, and reservation systems to alleviate the "tourism chaos" caused by tourists. Taking Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine as an example, the continued introduction of AI, data analysis, VR/AR and other technologies will bring more possibilities to tourism management.

Source: Yahoo! Japan, workshift, Yomiuri Shimbun