Itabashi

In Oyama, Itabashi, a covered shopping arcade runs roughly 560 metres from the station exit. The roof covers the entire length, so you can walk it end to end without an umbrella, and over two hundred shops line it. It is one of the large arcades still standing in Tokyo.

It is also disappearing. Under a road scheme, sections of the arcade began coming down in 2024, and redevelopment around the station is proceeding at the same time. A road will run through the middle of the shopping street, so what stands today may soon exist only as a record.

One shop here is unusual: it is run directly by the shopping street's own promotion association, contracting with municipalities across Japan to bring in their vegetables and regional produce. A shopping street operating its own store is rare, and worth seeing alongside the rest if you come.