Bright City Goes Dim

Facing energy shortages, the city of Tokyo, Japan, has been forced to cut down its energy usage, which is changing the bustling and brightly lit city's character.

1 minute read

April 2, 2011, 9:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg


This story looks at how the energy shortage is affecting the nightlife in the hip neighborhood of Shibuya.

"Because of the power shortage, giant electronic billboards that normally make evenings in Shibuya as bright as day have all been turned off.

Hidetomo Takahashi, an office worker, scans the crowd, trying to find a friend.

'Usually Shibuya is so bright you can see everyone's face even if they're far away,' he says in Japanese. 'But today it's so dark, it's difficult to see people approaching you.'"

Wednesday, March 30, 2011 in National Public Radio

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