> new neighborhoods next to railway lines

> ingenious Japan’s system of zoning

These two sentences don't fit together. Living next to major sources of pollution - and yes, noise is pollution as well - has been shown numerous times to be bad for the health of the people [1], leading to increased costs for healthcare systems [2], and to make it worse living near noisy traffic infrastructure (both rail and road) is closely correlated to poverty [3], which means poorer people are (as usual) being punished for being poor.

And on top of that, densification leads to worse mental health for the inhabitants [4] - particularly in Japan it's undeniable given phenomena such as "hikikomori".

Fight densification wherever someone tries to push it. People aren't poultry, and even in poultry or pig herds we know it's bad for their mental and physical health, why should humans be different?

[1] https://www.vrso.de/de/verband/veroeffentlichungen/veroeffen...

[2] https://dserver.bundestag.de/btd/17/026/1702638.pdf

[3] https://www.rnd.de/mobilitaet/teure-mobilitaet-wie-armut-die...

[4] https://www.aerzteblatt.de/archiv/risiko-fuer-psychische-erk...

Why Japan has such good railways