is a Japanese rechargeable contactless smart card ticketing system for public transport in

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

and environs. The

Kyūshū Railway Company The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan and the JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait ...

(JR Kyūshū) introduced the system on 1 March 2009. The name is an

acronym An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

of "Smart Urban GOing CArd", while in the local

Kyūshū dialect The dialects of the Japanese language fall into two primary clades, Eastern (including Tokyo) and Western (including Kyoto), with the dialects of Kyushu and Hachijō Island often distinguished as additional branches, the latter perhaps the most div ...

means "great". Like other electronic fare collection systems in Japan, the card uses RFID technology developed by

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professiona ...

Corporation, known as

FeliCa FeliCa is a contactless Radio-frequency identification, RFID smart cards, smart card system from Sony in Japan, primarily used in electronic money cards. The name stands for ''Felicity Card''. First utilized in the Octopus card system in Hong Kong, ...

. American graphic artist

Rodney Greenblat PaRappa Rappa (パラッパラッパー), or simply PaRappa, is a fictional character created by Japanese musician Masaya Matsuura and American artist Rodney Greenblat. PaRappa first appears as the title character of the 1996 rhythm video game '' ...

designed its official mascot, a frog with a clock. Iccard

On March 13, 2010, SUGOCA has been interoperated with two similar cards in Fukuoka—namely nimoca by

Nishi-Nippon Railroad The , also called or NNR, is one of Japan's "Big 16" private railroad companies. With headquarters in Fukuoka, it operates local and highway buses, supermarkets, real estate and travel agencies, as well as railways in Fukuoka Prefecture ...

(Nishitetsu) and

Hayakaken is a rechargeable contactless smart card ticketing system for public transport in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Fukuoka City Transportation Bureau introduced the system on March 7, 2009. Its name stands for , , , and . also means "Beca ...

from Fukuoka City Transportation Bureau—plus Suica, a card used in Greater Tokyo Area by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Additionally, since March 5, 2011, in a reciprocal agreement with Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and

West Japan Railway Company , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, and ...

(JR West), SUGOCA is also usable in

Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto is a metropolitan region in the Kansai region of Japan encompassing the metropolitan areas of the cities of Kyoto in Kyoto Prefecture, Osaka in Osaka Prefecture and Kobe in Hyōgo Prefecture. The entire region has a population () of 19,302,746 ...

, Okayama- Hiroshima and Nagoya metropolitan areas. Similarly, the

TOICA is a rechargeable contactless smart card ticketing system for JR Central railway network which was introduced in the Chūkyō Area (Greater Nagoya) of Japan on November 25, 2006. The name is an acronym for ''Tōkai IC Card''.ICOCA The card is a rechargeable contactless smart card used on the JR West rail network in Japan. The card was launched on November 1, 2003 for usage on the Urban Network, which encompasses the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe (Keihanshin). It ...

card of JR West can also be used on JR Kyushu rail services.

Usable area

SUGOCA was implemented on March 1, 2009, in 124 JR stations in

, mainly in the

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since anc ...

- Kitakyūshū area. As of 2022 it's usable in a total of 124 stations of below lines. * Chikuhi Line: Meinohama to Karatsu * Chikuhō Main Line: ( Fukuhoku Yutaka Line, Wakamatsu Line): Wakamatsu to Keisen * Hohi Main Line:

Kumamoto is the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a population of 1,461,000, ...

to Higo-Ōzu, and Nakahanda to Ōita **de facto allow travelling between Higo-Ōzu and Naka-Handa if no alights of train on halfway stations *

Ibusuki Makurazaki Line The is a railway line in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). It connects Kagoshima-Chūō Station in Kagoshima, to Makurazaki Station in Makurazaki, paralleling the eastern and southern coasts of S ...

: Kagoshima-Chūō to Kiire * Kagoshima Main Line: Mojikō to

Yatsushiro is a city located in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. Geography Located at the geographic center of Kyushu, Yatsushiro City is situated on the aptly named Yatsushiro Sea in between Kumamoto and Ashikita City. Climate Yatsushiro has a humid subtro ...

, and Sendai to

Kagoshima , abbreviated to , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Located at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "Naples of the Eastern wor ...

(the currently whole line) * Karatsu Line: Karatsu to Nishi-Karatsu * Kashii Line (Umi-no-Nakamichi Line): the whole line * Kyudai Main Line: Kurume to Zendōji, and Mukainoharu to Ōita **de facto allow travelling between Zendōji and Mukainoharu if no alights of train on halfway stations * Miyazaki Kuko Line: the whole line *

Nagasaki Main Line The , or simply Nagasaki Line, is a railway line owned by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) connecting Tosu Station in Saga Prefecture to Nagasaki Station in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. There is a separate branch of this line from Kikitsu S ...

: Tosu to Saga, and Isahaya to Nagasaki (includes Nagayo branch) **scheduled to implement supports for Saga to Kōhoku section by 2024 * Nichinan Line: Minami-Miyazaki to Tayoshi *

Nippō Main Line The is a railway line in Kyushu, in southern Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). The line connects Kokura Station in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima via the east coast of Kyushu, passing through the p ...

: Nishi-Kokura to

Kōzaki 260px, Kozaki Shrine is a town located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan., the town had an estimated population of 5,884 in 2471 households and a population density of 300 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Etymology The name of the to ...

, Sadowara to Tano, and Kokubu to Kagoshima (except for Ryūgamizu) * Omura Line: Isahaya to Takematsu **scheduled to implement supports for Haiki to Huis Ten Bosch section by 2024 * Sanyō Main Line: Shimonoseki to Moji (the whole line of JR Kyushu operation) * Sasaguri Line (Fukuhoku Yutaka Line): the whole line *''

Sasebo Line The is a railway line in Kyushu, Japan, operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). It connects Kōhoku Station in Kōhoku, Saga Prefecture to Sasebo Station in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture. It is part of the route connecting Sasebo wi ...

(from 2024): the whole line''

Types of cards

There are currently three types of cards available. The SUGOCA ticket is available as either an Unregistered card, or as a Registered card, where the card can be reissued when lost. The second is the SUGOCA commuter pass (which requires registration), and the Excell pass, which can be used for non-reserved seats of limited expresses. The third form is the mono SUGOCA, which is functionally identical to the normal SUGOCA pass, but is patterned differently for the

Kitakyushu Monorail The is a monorail system in the city of Kitakyushu in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, operated by . The is the only line. It runs the 8.8 km (5.5 mi) between Kokura station and Kikugaoka station in Kokura Minami ward in about 18 minutes. It ...

. It was issued starting October 1, 2015.

Extended functionality

The card is also usable as an electronic money or cashless card in a few stores in Fukuoka prefecture, or to purchase beverages at some drink machines. It will eventually be usable in all ' ampm' convenience stores in Kyūshū. From July 22, 2014, Pasmo cards can be used to pay for Wii U Nintendo eShop digital video games with the NFC function of the Wii U GamePad.Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine

References

External links

*
Official website
{{Fukuoka transit Fare collection systems in Japan Contactless smart cards Smart cards introduced in 2009 2009 establishments in Japan

Usable area

Types of cards

Extended functionality

See also

References

External links