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Man arrested after driving 20 kms the wrong way on Tomei Expressway

12 Comments

Police have arrested a 61-year-old man after he drove his car 20 kilometers the wrong way along the Tomei Expressway in Yamakita, Kanagawa Prefecture.

According to police, Atsushi Miyanishi, a potter from Nobi City, Ishikawa Prefecture, drove the wrong way along the expressway at around 10 p.m. on July 22, Sankei reported. Another vehicle, in an attempt to avoid him, swerved and flipped over, injuring its two occupants.

Miyanishi was quoted by police as saying he did not know he had been driving the wrong way.

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12 Comments
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A bit young for that behaviour.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Drove for 20 km the wrong way and he said that he didn't know he was? Whoa, time to take away his license forever.

12 ( +13 / -1 )

Either a senility test of a blood test for alcohol or drugs (prescription or non) is in order.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

At 10 pm , I guess he just finished his sake drinking at the bar ....

3 ( +3 / -0 )

My money is on intoxication...61 is a bit too young for dementia or senility. Either way...no more license for him!

3 ( +3 / -0 )

'' Gee, why are all the other cars going the wrong way?'' Please revoke his license forever.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

I know that road. It's impossible to NOT know, unless you are completely oblivious.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

He did not know???

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

I know that road/area, and I'm mystified how he managed to get himself going in the wrong direction.

About the only way I could imagine is if he made a sharp turn in the wrong direction when leaving a parking/service area instead of merging as normal, which would be utterly counter-intuitive, rather difficult (virtually impossible to do by mistake, IMO), and a sign of serious confusion, drunkenness, or whatever altered state of consciousness, and even that's a reach.

I've had to use the expressways quite a lot lately, and I'm not happy at the prospect of having to watch for guys coming in the wrong direction, in addition to some of the other incompetent driving behavior I have to be wary of.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Just because everyone else is going the other way does not mean you are wrong.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

20km is a long ways on a major highway to only run into one car. I am so glad the other car survived, this could have been much much worse.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

What is this road like? Is it one of those rat runs with no turns off?

He could started without realizing it, taken time to work it out, and then just hung in because he was committed in the hope there was a turn off soon.

Doing a three point turn on an expressway is not wise.

I wish there was no depth to these stories.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

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