Part of a bullet train that derailed in one of the Oct. 23 earthquakes in Niigata Prefecture came close to lying across the opposite track, according to a government interim report released Monday.
In addition, all Joetsu Shinkansen Line trains were stopped after the first quake, and the possibility of an even worse disaster was averted.
The report by the Railway Accidents Investigation Committee of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry says that the train's lead car was prevented from going onto the other track by twisted rail snarling its wheels and a part on the bottom of the carriage designed to fend off obstacles on tracks.