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April 29, 2025
 

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RAIL

Yasutomo Suzuki (second from right) celebrates in the city of Shizuoka on Sunday after being elected governor of Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics
May 27, 2024
Opposition-backed Yasutomo Suzuki wins Shizuoka gubernatorial vote
Suzuki’s victory could pave the way for restarting the maglev train line project that had been delayed due to opposition from his predecessor.
A worker unloads packages from a shinkansen at JR Tokyo Station on Friday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 19, 2024
JR firms expanding cargo transport using shinkansen trains
Such services are set to expand as Japan facing disruptions to logistics services stemming from an overtime cap for truck drivers.
Former Shizuoka Vice Gov. Shinichi Omura announces he is running for the gubernatorial election, on April 12.
JAPAN / Politics
May 9, 2024
Campaigning for Shizuoka's next governor kicks off with all eyes on maglev line
A record six candidates are running for the post after the previous governor resigned over controversial remarks.
Mikuni Minato is not a town that has recently fallen on hard times — it's been that way for a century.
LIFE / Travel
May 7, 2024
48 hours in Mikuni Minato, Japan’s port town that time forgot
A trip to Mikuni Minato may not appeal to the average tourist, but well-traveled residents will find it fascinating.
Jiro Suzuki, head of Kosaka Railroad Railpark in Kosaka, Akita Prefecture, stands next to a retired Akebono sleeper train that is now being used as a lodging facility, on April 22.
JAPAN / Society
May 3, 2024
Lodging in 'blue train' to resume in Japan after five-year hiatus
Services using the retired sleeper train are set to restart Saturday after five years of suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Customer harassment” — in which customers harass front-line workers with aggressive behavior or unreasonable requests — has become a growing problem in the service industry.
JAPAN / Society
May 2, 2024
Japan steps up measures against 'customer harassment'
A 2022 survey found that 67.5% of respondents had experienced some kind of harassment from customers in the past three years.
JR East says it will not yield to unreasonable demands by customers who harass its employees.
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2024
JR East says it will not respond to customer harassment
According to the policy, the company will not respond to customers who engage in harassment, such as physically or psychologically attacking employees.
People observe a moment of silence for the victims of a JR Fukuchiyama Line train crash in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, Thursday morning on the 19th anniversary of the accident.
JAPAN
Apr 25, 2024
Victims of JR West train crash mourned 19 years on
The president of JR West and other officials observed a moment of silence at 9:18 a.m., the time of the crash, which killed 106 passengers.
The planned extension of the Hokkaido Shinkansen to Sapporo will be delayed until after fiscal 2030 due to difficulties relating to tunnel construction, according to sources.
JAPAN
Apr 25, 2024
Hokkaido Shinkansen extension to be delayed beyond fiscal 2030
According to sources, tunnel construction for the section has proven challenging.
Delfin Lorenzana
BUSINESS
Apr 20, 2024
Philippines wants U.S. and Japan to take over rail deal eyed by China
The $868 million Subic-Clark railway will link former U.S. military bases turned commercial hubs and form part of the planned Luzon Economic Corridor.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi during the signing of the Rasht-Astara railway agreement in May 2023.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 18, 2024
New 'sanctions-proof' transport routes put Russia at heart of global trade
Shipping and rail networks via Iran and an Arctic sea passage could strengthen Moscow’s pivot toward China and India and away from Europe.
A Tokaido shinkansen. It is unclear whether the snake was venomous or how it ended up on the train, and there was no injury or panic among passengers.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2024
Snake on a train: Discovery of serpent delays Tokyo-Nagoya shinkansen
Shinkansen customers can bring small dogs, cats and other animals, including pigeons on board — but not snakes.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the Akasaka Palace state guest house in Tokyo in May 2022.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2024
Biden and Kishida likely to discuss Texas bullet train project, sources say
The leaders may publicly voice support for the multi-billion-dollar Texas project after Wednesday's talks.
The Noto Tetsudo railway resumed operations on Saturday. The railway stretches over 33.1 kilometers, connecting Nanao and Anamizu stations.
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2024
Quake-hit railway in Noto fully reopens after three months
The first train of the day departed from Anamizu Station adorned with a sticker that read: "Ganbaro Noto" (Let's go Noto).
With the resignation of Shizuoka Gov. Heita Kawakatsu, a major hurdle may have been removed in the construction of the maglev high-speed train, which is expected to connect Tokyo to Osaka in just over 60 minutes.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 5, 2024
Maglev train is back on track after Shizuoka governor's derailing
Shizuoka's governor was blocking the construction of Japan's maglev bullet train. Now that he has resigned, the project can finally move at full speed.
Shizuoka Gov. Heita Kawakatsu apologizes for his gaffe at a news conference in Shizuoka on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 3, 2024
Shizuoka governor's resignation may remove hurdle for maglev project
Heita Kawakatsu has long opposed the construction of a tunnel in the prefecture for the next-generation shinkansen, citing environmental concerns.
JR Tokai President Shunsuke Niwa speaks to reporters after meeting with transport ministry officials on Friday.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2024
JR Tokai gives up on 2027 maglev target date for opening
JR Tokai gave up the 2027 goal as the Shizuoka Prefectural Government has declined to approve tunnel drilling work due to environmental concerns.
The 8620-class steam locomotive was manufactured in 1922 during Japan's Taisho Era (1912-1926).
LIFE / Lifestyle
Mar 30, 2024
One last journey for Japan's oldest steam train
Japan's 101-year-old steam locomotive has made its final journey, thought it may live on as a museum piece in the future.
Shizue Takahashi, a bereaved family member of the 1995 sarin attack on the Tokyo subway system, offers a prayer at Kasumigaseki Station on Wednesday, the 29th anniversary of the attack.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 20, 2024
Japan marks 29th anniversary of Tokyo subway sarin attack
The Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult's sarin nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system killed 14 people and injured more than 6,000.
Made by Karimoku, Keiji Ashikawa’s design of the JAL Boeing 777 cabin window stool uses an outer window pane from the plane as a transparent seat set on a base comprising recycled oak off-cuts.
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
Mar 16, 2024
Recycling old JAL planes and bullet trains into design treasures
This month, On: Design looks at recycled products designed to rev the engines of plane and train enthusiasts.
China seizes disputed reef near key Philippine military outpost
China Coast Guard officers unfurl a national flag on Sandy Cay reef, near the Philippine-held Thitu Island, in disputed waters of the South China Sea this month in this screen shot taken from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami
A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
California says it overtakes Japan to become world’s No. 4 economy
Vehicles travel along the 110 freeway in downtown Los Angeles. California's GDP has overtaken Japan's to become the world's fourth largest economy, according to the U.S. state.
Arunima Mazumdar: ‘Japanese literature has a niche but deeply engaged readership in India’
Arunima Mazumdar, a New Delhi-based communications professional, began sharing her love of Japanese literature online in 2022. The platform has grown into a robust community known as Dokusha Book Club.
Counting the reasons why there are so few American cars in Japan
Tesla's store in Tokyo's Shibuya district. While sales of American cars in Japan appear to be shrinking, Tesla's presence in the country is growing.
Expo '25 gives the world a masterclass in mascots
2025 Osaka Expo mascot Myaku-Myaku dances on the stage during the event's official opening ceremony on April 12.
Japan struggles with gray zone of AI deepfakes exploiting children
AI-generated content — including those made using pictures of real people, which are known as “deepfakes” — is not explicitly covered under Japan's current legal framework, nor are human-drawn illustrations that depict child abuse.
‘Wildcat Dome’ challenges Japan's historical narratives
On the surface, "Wildcat Dome" tells a personal story of damaged children — now adults — bound together by tragedy. Underneath, there’s a constant undercurrent of political consequence, invisible and pervasive like radioactive particles.
Reclaiming Sanya, one meal at a time
Magokoro Yoshihira (center) is the managing director of Yui Associates, which operates the neighborhood fixtures of Sanya Cafe and Juyoh Hotel. Yusuke Takahashi (left) met Yoshihira during a difficult period in his life and now works as the cafe’s chef. Nancy Anne (right) has worked for over 10 years at Juyoh Hotel and enjoys the multicultural environment.
Amid uncertain tariffs, is now the time to buy a new iPhone?
An Apple store in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward in September. Prices for the newest iPhone models start at around ¥100,000 ($700) in Japan.

Podcast

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

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami
By Alex K.T. Martin

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