Through the Lens: Social Media Inspires Japanese Women to Dash Into Rickshaw Pulling

TOKYO — Rickshaw puller Yuka Akimoto is one of a handful of women who have chosen to pull rickshaws in Tokyo, attracted to the male-dominated profession through social media, which in turn has given some of these female pullers a strong local and international following.

When the 45-minute tour comes to an end, the 21-year-old bows deeply to her clients and offers a blistered palm - covered with a clean cloth - to help the couple alight. Sweat pours down her flushed face.

Now, she says she loves her job and wants to work as long as she is physically able. A tag hanging on a cord around her neck reads: "I don't want to give up."

Wearing traditional tabi split-toed socks, Akimoto and her fellow rickshaw pullers walk or run an average of 20 km (12 miles) a day, no matter the weather.

Akimoto joined Tokyo Rickshaw two years ago after the pandemic dashed her plans to start a job at Tokyo Disneyland. The company, which mainly operates in the Asakusa tourist area, says about third of their 90 pullers are now women, and they are seeking more female recruits.

Rickshaw drivers Misato Otoshi is one of a handful of women who have chosen to pull rickshaws in Tokyo with less than 10 percent of all applicants getting a job offer. "Even though it’s considered to be men's jobs, I thought it would be fun if I, a woman, could also do it," she said. "I thought that being something out of the ordinary would be a strength for me."

The pullers actively promote themselves on social media, winning repeat customers who request them personally.

And it was those social media posts that drew college student Yumeka Sakurai, 20, to join Tokyo Rickshaw.

After four months of training and overcoming opposition from friends and families, she is now proud to haul passengers in her rickshaw. "I've watched many videos of women training hard and becoming rickshaw drivers themselves. They gave me the confidence that I could do it too if I tried hard," she said.

Pullers walk or run an average of 20 km (12 miles) a day and, in addition to being physically strong, they must have extensive knowledge of Tokyo and know how to engage with the tourists, who mostly hire them for sightseeing.

The most popular drivers make over 1 million yen ($6,730) a month, three times the national average, Tokyo Rickshaw said, adding that less than 10 percent of all applicants get offered a job. 

Tokyo Rickshaw President Ryuta Nishio said sometimes he gets complaints that women should not be doing such physically demanding work. Female pullers also occasionally face sexual harassment or have their knowledge challenged by male customers, he added.

"We treat both male and female pullers completely equally," Nishio said. "The women say they want to be treated as same as the men, and in fact many of them are way tougher."