Tag - driving

 
 

DRIVING

A blue car driving the wrong way on the Shin-Meishin Expressway in Mie Prefecture, on Sunday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 20, 2025
Peruvian man held on suspicion of hitting vehicles while driving the wrong way
The Mie Prefectural Police believe the suspect continued to drive in the wrong direction after causing collisions.
Uber Technologies CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in New York on Wednesday
BUSINESS / Companies
May 15, 2025
Uber to launch self-driving mobility service in Japan
The U.S. ride-hailing service provider plans to introduce autonomous rides in Japan once partner firms are ready, an executive said.
A 31-year-old man was taken into custody on Monday on suspicion of drunken driving after he caused a multivehicle crash in the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 6, 2025
Driver arrested at scene of Yokosuka crash that injured eight
A breathalyzer test showed the 31-year-old man's blood alcohol level was approximately three times the legal limit.
A Fuchu expressway entrance in western Tokyo is closed on April 6 due to a glitch in the Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) system.
JAPAN
May 2, 2025
Central Nippon Expressway won't collect tolls after ETC glitch
About 960,000 vehicles are estimated to have been affected by the problem, which lasted some 38 hours.
Under new rules, those who use smartphones while riding a bicycle would be subject to the maximum fine of ¥12,000.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 24, 2025
Japan set to fine cyclists on the spot for rule violations from 2026
Until now, police have usually responded to cycling violations by issuing verbal warnings or handing out red tickets that can lead to prosecution.
A vandalized sign indicating an ultralow emission zone in west London.
ENVIRONMENT
Apr 10, 2025
Clean streets versus business woes: Pollution charge divides Londoners
The plan in London requires motorists to switch to low-emission vehicles or face a daily charge.
The Kanagawa branch of the transportation company Maruhari in the city of Atsugi, Hokkaido in May 2024
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 9, 2025
Ex-company president referred to prosecutors over 2024 truck accident
The former president is suspected of forcing an ill driver to drive the truck involved in the accident on the Metropolitan Expressway's Ikebukuro Line.
A Fuchu expressway entrance in western Tokyo is closed Sunday due to a glitch in the Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) system.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2025
Tollbooths now operational after ETC malfunction causes mass confusion
It was the first time such a large-scale problem involving the ETC system has occurred since Japanese expressways were privatized in 2005.
Aichi police investigate the scene of an accident where a passenger car barreled through a busy section of downtown Nagoya on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 1, 2025
Seven people injured after car runs into pedestrians in Nagoya
Police arrested the car's driver, a woman in her 70s, at the scene on suspicion of negligent driving resulting in injury.
Officials from the Meteorological Agency hold a news conference about the heavy snow forecast, on Sunday in the city of Saitama.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2025
Snow forces highway closures in Tokyo
The closures are set to begin at around 4 p.m. for major routes including the Tomei Expressway, Shin-Tomei Expressway and Joshinetsu Expressway.
JR East started the services in Minamiboso and Tateyama, cities in Chiba Prefecture, on Monday and will begin them in Senboku, Akita Prefecture, in the second half of this year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 3, 2025
JR East to offer ride-hailing services at limited locations
The firm started the services in the cities of Minamiboso and Tateyama in Chiba Prefecture on Monday, and will begin them in Senboku, Akita Prefecture, later this year.
The number of fatal bicycle accidents and those causing serious injury that were attributed to cyclists' mobile phone use totaled 28 in 2024, a record high. Similarly, the number of such accidents involving cars driven by drivers distracted by mobile phones rose to the highest on record, at 136 cases.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 27, 2025
Accidents caused by distracted drivers hit record high in 2024
A total of 136 fatal car accidents and those resulting in serious injury due to mobile phone use were recorded last year, the highest since at least 2007.
Prince Hisahito (center) visits Maizuru Repatriation Memorial Museum in Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, last week.
JAPAN
Feb 18, 2025
Prince Hisahito obtains driver's license
Prince Hisahito is set to enter the University of Tsukuba in April.
Taxis in central Sendai. More people are becoming attracted to the job of a taxi driver as it can allow them to work flexibly.
BUSINESS / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Feb 10, 2025
Cab driving becoming an increasingly popular job in Sendai
Flexible hours and the work-at-your-own-pace environment has led to a renewed interest in taxi driving among younger people.
Priority lanes for test runs of self-driving trucks will be introduced on a roughly 100-kilometer section of the Shin-Tomei Expressway in Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN
Feb 9, 2025
Self-driving lanes to open on Japan's Shin-Tomei expressway
The move is part of a plan to create a road network that can handle so-called Level 4 autonomous driving amid labor shortages in the logistics industry.
Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki told a news conference Tuesday that he wants recommendations on criteria for dangerous driving as soon as possible.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 28, 2025
Japan to set clearer standards for dangerous driving offenses
Under the current law, the criteria for applying a charge for dangerous driving, which can carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, are vague.
At a news conference regarding the joint delivery service, Yamato Holdings President Yutaka Nagao (left), and Fujitsu President Takahito Tokita (right) pose for a photo on Monday in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 28, 2025
Yamato and Fujitsu to launch more efficient delivery service
The two companies aim to optimize deliveries across industries by loading packages from various clients onto a single truck and improving loading rates.
Vehicles drive over a road made using recycled plastic waste in Pokhara, Nepal, on Dec. 26.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Jan 27, 2025
Rubbish roads: Nepal explores paving with plastic
Studies show that roads paved with plastic waste can be twice as durable as normal roads.
Regular gasoline was priced at ¥194 per liter at a gas station in Nagano on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 23, 2025
Japan's average gas price exceeds ¥185 for first time in 17 months
The price hike reflects reduced government subsidies to oil wholesalers.
Tokyo led the country's 47 prefectures with 146 traffic-related fatalities in 2024, followed by Aichi with 141 and Chiba with 131.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2025
Japan's traffic death toll falls to third-lowest in 2024
There were 2,663 traffic-related deaths in 2024. The government has a goal of lowering the annual toll below 2,000 by 2025.

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building