“LED Manholes” with the designs of 27 Kadokawa titles such as, “A Certain Magical Index”, “Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World”, “Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin”, and “Sgt. Frog”, will be installed in sandou (roads approaching to shrines) by Tokorozawa City, Saitama Prefecture.
This was announced at “Sandou Project Debrief Session”, which was held by Kadokawa at Musashino Nimasu Uruwashiki Yamato no Miyashiro in Tokorozawa Sakura Town, Tokorozawa City, Saitama Prefecture on Aug. 1.
“LED Manholes” are manholes that shine with LED, which were designed for advertisement purposes by Tokorozawa City Water and Sewer Bureau. Light-permeable design plates are set on the top side with LED lighting units under it, which causes the illustration on the design plate to shine. Solar panels are used as power sources, so they are environmentally friendly.
These are the first shining manholes in Japan (research by Japan Ground Manhole Association), and the Tokorozawa City water and sewer business manager Hirata Hitoshi says, “This is probably the first of its kind in the world.”
The city's Water and Sewer Bureau started the first advertisement project via manhole covers in Japan from 2018, and Kadokawa deciding to submit illustration ads led to the installation.
The Kadokawa titles designed on the manholes are: “A Certain Magical Index”, “Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World”, “Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin”, “The Five Star Stories”, “Bungou Stray Dogs”, “Uzaki-chan Want's to Hang Out!”, “Yamato Takeru”, “The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya”, “Lucky Star”, “Slayers”, “Date A Live”, “Overlord”, “Sword Art Online”, “Full Metal Panic!”, “Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai”, “Neon Genesis Evangelion”, “Record of Lodoss War”, “Sgt. Frog”, “Spice and Wolf”, “KonoSuba: God's Blessing on this Wonderful World!”, “Kino's Journey —the Beautiful World—”, “Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious”, and more.
The “LED Manholes” are set in the sandou from Higashi-Tokorozawa Station on the JR Musashino Line to Higashi-Tokorozawa Park, which is right beside Tokorozawa Sakura Town, and they will be lighted up every day from 5:00 p.m. to 2:00 am next day.
