Station Notice: Dates, Alternatives, and a Cyclist's Problem
You are at a train station in Sapporo on Saturday 15 March. A handwritten notice is taped to the ticket gate. It reads: お知らせ。三月十五日から四月十日まで、この駅のエレベーターは工事で使えません。かわりに、南口のエスカレーターを使ってください。北口のエスカレーターは使えません。自転車で来る人は、北口の駐輪場を使ってください。あなたの自転車は南口の駐輪場にとめてあります。 You read kanji slowly and recognise 工事, 使えません, 南口, 北口, but you are not sure whether the notice starts today or ends today. You have a heavy suitcase, a bike parked at the south exit, and a train to catch at 10:40. The ticket gate is on the second floor, and the station is busy.
1. Which exit should you use for the escalator, and which exit is closed for escalators? Explain how the notice marks the contrast.
Read the worked answer
Use the south exit (南口) escalator. The north exit (北口) escalator is not usable.
- かわりに means 'instead': it introduces 南口のエスカレーターを使ってください as the substitute for the closed elevator.
- 北口のエスカレーターは使えません is a separate negative statement, so it is not the substitute.
- Do not assume the south elevator is working: the first sentence says この駅のエレベーター is closed for construction. Only the escalator is offered.
- The notice gives no floor information, so 'ticket gate on the second floor' means you still need the escalator or stairs, not the elevator.
2. You parked your bike at the south exit. What does the notice require, and what will you do with the suitcase?
Read the worked answer
The notice says 自転車で来る人は、北口の駐輪場を使ってください - that is an instruction for arriving cyclists about where to park. Your bike is already at the south exit, and the notice does not explicitly say the south parking area is closed.
- With a heavy suitcase and a 10:40 train, the practical judgement is: leave the bike where it is, use the south escalator to reach the ticket gate, and ask station staff if you are unsure.
- Do not try to wheel the bike through the ticket gate or move it to the north exit during the last minutes before the train.
- The key reading skill is distinguishing 使えません (cannot use) from 使ってください (please use). Only the elevator and north escalator are marked unusable.
3. How do you decide whether the closure begins today or ends today? What in the text and situation helps?
Read the worked answer
The pattern 三月十五日から四月十日まで means from 15 March until 10 April.
- から marks the start; まで marks the end. Today is 15 March, so the closure starts today.
- If the notice meant 'ends today', the first date would be in the past and the pattern would be different, e.g. 四月十日まで with no から.
- The kanji 工事 (construction) confirms an ongoing period, not a one-day event.
- Practical check: the notice is taped up on the day you arrive, which fits a start date; still, use the から…まで pattern rather than guessing from the situation.