Tokyo bullet train disruption affects 230,000 passengers

Wow, I never realized there were that many shinkansen trains.

This tradition of visiting their parents at home in locals will not last long after their parents die.

This tradition of visiting their parents at home in locals will not last long after their parents die.

Blanket statement that is inaccurate for many parts of Japan! My inlaws died a long time ago, but since we have the family altar, EVERYONE comes here, even though the parents are gone, every New Year and Obon.

It's a pain in the arse to prepare for, but one silver lining is we dont have to deal with traffic !

Yubaru

Okinawa and mainland Japan may be different. When their parents are gone, where are they staying when they visit their home town?

Returning home in Japan every New Year is a permanent tradition in Japan. My wife lives with me in Austin and of course she feels the need to return home around the New Year. This will never go away.

Its times like this that remind me to be thankful that my in-laws' families have lived in the Tokyo area since time immemorial.

One little problem and the wheels fall off. A delay like that would make all the following trains packed to the rafters like morning peak hour trains. I experienced it once many years ago and swore I would never travel in the peak seasons again.

One little problem and the wheels fall off.

Better to fix the little problems than actually have the wheels fall off.

A total of 376 bullet trains were suspended or delayed for up to one hour on the Tohoku, Joetsu, Hokuriku and other shinkansen lines, according to East Japan Railway Co.

I LOVE Japan. Only in Japan would this be considered a big deal.

Whereas, this is an everyday, ordinary occurrence pretty much anywhere else in the world due to weather, maintenance issues, infrastructure problems, pilot drunkness, etc.!!

They should be thankful for having a Shinkansen. I used local trains from Tokyo to Kyoto (18 kip), it took a whole day. I used the Shinkansen, just over 3 hours with a nice comfy seat, toilets, battery charger points, vending machines and meals on wheels. What’s an hour?

@Goodlucktoyou,

What’s an hour?

Exactly!!

Schopenhauer: "This tradition of visiting their parents at home in locals will not last long after their parents die."

What a lovely holiday greeting, Schopenhauer. Well done. Must be a happy time in the Schopenhauer home to inspire such comments.

In any case, I can just imagine, given that already in this country they book the trains at up to 130% capacity and people have to STAND for hours despite paying inflated holiday costs for the trip. Hope they get home eventually. Knowing JR, there won't be any kind of compensation.

There has to be a smarter way to staggering journeys, I am not suggesting for one moment the traditional New Years family celebrations be cancelled.

I am just proposing a “holiday” schedule, so employees can leave at a more appropriate less stressful times. And business necessity can be planned in advance.

I am just proposing a “**holiday” schedule, so employees can leave at a more appropriate less stressful times. And business necessity can be planned in advance. **

that would be common sence, if you work for the public service this is already a option, my J brother in-law goes on holidays whenever he likes and has generous holidays every year, its just getting the private sector in Japan to do the same, but nobody wants to be the first doing it. J business is all about the business over the workers first until that mindest changed nothing will change

Goodlucktoyou - They should be thankful for having a Shinkansen. I used local trains from Tokyo to Kyoto (18 kip), it took a whole day. I used the Shinkansen, just over 3 hours with a nice comfy seat, toilets, battery charger points, vending machines and meals on wheels. 

There would have been no comfy seats, people would be sitting in the toilets, you would not be able to get to a battery charger point or a vending machine and there would be no meals on wheels. It would have been a nightmare!

I often use the Joban line during the peak hours. There are toilets on the trains, which are always occupied until the train gets to Ueno or Nippori and someone will always burst out of the toilet looking sleepy. The creeps are sleeping in the toilets for their journey. I see it every day coz that is the carriage I use.

@disillusion. Thanx fo the info. I live in the countryside and have 4 seats to myself during rush hour. New year I stay with my partner and boy, waiting for the new year bento boxes to be half price. Glad I don’t live in your woods.

Safety should be paramount, but if your stuck on a train that's late, its a different story, but for some people its the end of the world. if it was me on that train, yes I would be annoyed, but I would take into consideration theft someone has put my and others people safety first.

Okinawa and mainland Japan may be different. When their parents are gone, where are they staying when they visit their home town?

They stay with the family of the one who watches over the family altar!

Either that or a hotel!

The Japanese Train system is such that you can normally set your watches by their scheduled arrival/departure times. This glitch upsets more that a simple transportation issue, it effect the entire countries operations.

I was heading back to Sendai when I got caught up in this ( because some of us actually live in the North East); very frustrating, and surprisingly chaotic at Tokyo Station as they moved a line of cops in front of the ticket barrier, but no harm done in the end.

So many passengers at a choke point