Japan is known for having many cute and cool things, but I was still surprised to learn that Japanese construction sites are now being guarded by Hello Kitty.

Of course, Hello Kitty wasn’t the first cute person to guard construction sites in Japan, as the Sendai Meiban company has been supply the country with many other cute barricades.

Sendai Meiban began leasing and selling character-based safety barricades in 2006, and they have been a huge hit ever since. It has also become a great way to raise interest in tourists ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, because let’s face it, who doesn’t want to take a picture of a cute princess barricade?

But the great thing about Japan ingenuity is that no matter how cute they are trying to be, they never sacrifice functionality. All of the barricades have proper reflective tape and some have additional lighting, which means they will catch your eye even at night.

In addition, these cute characters have also made ongoing construction in residential areas much more tolerable. It’s sort of hard to get upset at a construction site full of orange monkeys, haha.

Next time you are in Japan, make sure to look out for construction sites because you might just see the perfect opportunity for a very cute picture! Here are a few more cute pics for the road!

Thanks for stopping by JapanSauce.Net, and we will see you next time!

—Sal