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A train on the JR Joban line overran the platform at Kashiwa Station in Chiba Prefecture by about 240 meters after the driver became drowsy, JR officials said Sunday.
According to JR East, the incident occurred at around 8 a.m. Saturday. The rapid transit train was on its way from Ueno Station in Tokyo to Toride Station in Ibaraki Prefecture, Fuji TV reported.
The train was scheduled to stop at Kashiwa Station. The driver, who is in his 40s, said later he became drowsy. The conductor applied the emergency brake and the train came to a halt about 240 meters past the platform.
None of the 300 passengers were hurt and the train backed up and resumed service about five minutes later, JR said.
JR said it will review its drivers’ work schedules and make utmost efforts to ensure a recurrence does not happen.
There was no information given on whether the driver was taking any medication or when his last work shift was.
© Japan Today
8 Comments
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JJ Jetplane
I’m curious if it was due to him working too many hours or he just didn’t sleep well the night before.
The good thing is no one was hurt and it only caused a 5 minute delay.
Kokuzi
"driver became drowsy" is Japan-speak for "driver fell asleep"...
We all know that a Japanese driver would never fall asleep on the job!
Do the hustle
Review the drivers’ work schedule does not mean change them. Most of these drivers are working 8-10 hour shifts with only short breaks. However, this case was early on the morning. What’s the bet he was drinking until the wee hours on a Friday night?
Goodlucktoyou
Poor guy, overworked and now many many hours dealing with bosses. A couple of years ago I saw two train drivers cleaning a urinal with toothbrushes with their boss watching behind at Kyoto eki. Poor guy.
nandakandamanda
Too much automation is directly responsible for causing this kind of happening. The machine wins ultimately because the logic forces the human out.
garypen
It's that kind of system of punishment that led to the horrible JR Amagasaki accident. The driver was speeding because he didn't want to be reprimanded for being late.
My son, who is a train driver in the UK, says the Amagasaki incident, and the management culture leading to it, is standard safety training for rail employees around the globe.
garypen
That "archaic train system" is the envy of the world for its efficiency, punctuality, and safety record.
However, the nation as a whole does need to drastically update its archaic culture of overwork.
papigiulio
Drowsy sounds like he might have taken hayfever medicine?