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August 29, 2025
 

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DRIVING

Ride-sharing apps on a smartphone. Since Monday, users have technically been able to hail private vehicles through such apps, but only in specific areas and at certain times.
BUSINESS / EXPLAINER
Apr 2, 2024
Japan has started private ride-hailing services. Here’s how they work.
Private drivers can only be called during times of high demand and in certain areas.
In 2019, Japan tightened penalties for the use of smartphones and other mobile handsets while driving.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2024
Record high number of distracted drivers causing death or serious injury
In 2023, 25 incidents were fatal and 97 caused serious injury, with about 10% of drivers using mobile phones to talk and 90% looking at screens.
Police stations in Tokyo's Minato Ward hold a cycling safety event in Tokyo in August.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 6, 2024
Japan to introduce 'blue ticket' fine system for cyclists
Fines are expected to be between some ¥5,000 ($33) and ¥12,000, the same as those for traffic violations by motorized scooter riders.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2024
Japanese airlines say baggage car drivers cheated on written exam
ANA Holdings and Japan Airlines said their subsidiaries allowed workers at Haneda Airport to cheat on the test to obtain driving licenses.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2024
Heavy snow falls in Tokyo and wider region, impacting transport networks
While the snowfall may peak overnight, those commuting on Tuesday morning are likely to encounter icy roads and impacts on trains or roadways.
Blair Masters and Talisker Scott Hunter pose for a photo with their kei truck, nicknamed “KT,” outside Ebisu Circuit in Fukushima Prefecture.
LIFE / Travel / Longform
Nov 6, 2023
The little truck that could: A fresh way to tour Japan's north
Travelers have documented almost every corner of Japan. Perhaps a new kind of adventure would be doing those same journeys by different means.
Suzuki President and Representative Director Toshihiro Suzuki unveils the Suzu-Ride at a press day of the Japan Mobility Show at Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo on Oct. 25.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 1, 2023
New mobility concepts cater to older people's love for the road
The four-wheeled vehicles categorized as "specified small motorized bicycles" can be driven on public roads by anyone 16 or over without a license.
AI software is being used to detect cognitive decline in older Japanese drivers in order to help prevent accidents.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 22, 2023
AI startup helps insurers spot cognitive decline in elderly drivers
Once reliant on a driver's age and model of car, some insurers now rely on AI to expedite settlements and craft more precise risk assessments.
Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Tetsuo Saito
JAPAN / Society
Oct 10, 2023
Japan to add driving to specified foreign worker skills
"We'll make various efforts to ensure that local residents and tourists have access to necessary means of transportation," minister Tetsuo Saito said.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2023
Japan to give shopping points to promote outside door delivery
The project is the centerpiece of the government's emergency policy package to address a looming shortage of truck drivers due to tighter overtime caps.
Delivery trucks at a parking area along the highway in Chiba Prefecture in April
JAPAN / Society
Sep 14, 2023
Japan set to expand visa framework to tackle driver shortage
The planned expansion of the visa framework is to attract foreign nationals to the logistics industries and to address the driver shortage problem.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 13, 2023
Japan's pump prices fall for first time in 18 weeks
The decline has come after the national average rewrote a record high for the second consecutive week.
JAPAN
May 31, 2023
Know before you drive: Construction to impact traffic around Haneda Airport
The operator of the expressway has warned of traffic jams during the two-week period, which started May 27, similar to those typically seen at year-end.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 30, 2023
Michi no eki stations evolving into more than just roadside resting spaces
According to the National Michi-no-Eki Association, the facilities rack up combined sales of about ¥250 billion per year.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
May 29, 2023
A year on, restricted licenses for elderly drivers rarely used in Fukushima
The license was introduced to encourage older drivers to switch to so-called safety support cars fitted with cutting-edge technologies.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 30, 2023
Outlook uncertain for Japan's mileage-based auto tax idea
Some in the automotive industry, which fears that a further increase in the burden on drivers would cause a further shift away from vehicle ownership and driving, have protested the idea.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Apr 29, 2023
The starts and stops of road tripping in Japan
From tolls and traffic to expensive parking, driving to your vacation destination in Japan isn't always a smooth ride.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2023
Japan to limit use of parking spots for wheelchair users
In some areas, such parking slots have sometimes not been available to the intended users after the range of people allowed to use them was expanded.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 18, 2023
Life and leisure in the fast lane: Japan's motorsports tourism push
Japan may be famous for its high-speed trains, but what if its cars were just as much of a tourist draw?
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jun 27, 2022
Toyota to boost motorsports in Asia
Japanese cars already hold a high market share in Asia, so promoting car racing may be aimed at spreading an interest in the higher-performance models.
Philippine bid to acquire used Japanese warships gains steam
Tokyo is looking to transfer Abukuma-class vessels to the Philippines as part of broader efforts to boost the defense capabilities of like-minded neighbors amid growing Chinese military assertiveness in the region.
Koshien’s dark summer forces reckoning for high school baseball
Koryo High School players greet their cheering section after beating Hokkaido’s Asahikawa Shiho in the first round of Summer Koshien on Aug. 7. The school withdrew three days later as a bullying scandal enveloped the team.
Akazawa's trip to Washington for tariff talks abruptly canceled
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, had been set to fly to Washington on Thursday.
Can anime carry the memories of World War II?
Many schools in Japan show "Grave of the Fireflies" as educational material to tell the emotionally grueling story of a boy who has no means to prevent his sister from starving to death.
Confusion over Japan’s ‘hometown’ plan overshadows African development event
First Lady Yoshiko Ishiba (center, in white and blue dress) hosts an event on Japanese culture with the first ladies of African leaders on the sidelines of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Yokohama on Aug. 21.
Mitsubishi’s wind-power retreat a blow to Japan's alternative-energy goals
Wind turbines in the town of Happo in Akita prefecture. Wind power is a key part of Japan's alternative energy drive.
Virtual singer Kaf's music becomes magic in 'Kamitsubaki City Under Construction'
Virtual singer Kaf got her start in 2018 by posting songs and covers to YouTube. Now, after having performed live shows at major venues including Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan, she is turning to voice acting and starring in the new anime series “Kamitsubaki City Under Construction.”
Can anime carry the memories of World War II?
Many schools in Japan show "Grave of the Fireflies" as educational material to tell the emotionally grueling story of a boy who has no means to prevent his sister from starving to death.
In pictures: Koenji Awa Odori 2025
Japan Times
Koshien’s dark summer forces reckoning for high school baseball
Koryo High School players greet their cheering section after beating Hokkaido’s Asahikawa Shiho in the first round of Summer Koshien on Aug. 7. The school withdrew three days later as a bullying scandal enveloped the team.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past
By Alex K.T. Martin

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