Tokyo-Nagoya Shinkansen Service Returns To Operation After Being Stopped Due To Topan Ampil

JAKARTA - The shinkansen high-speed train service between Tokyo and Nagoya resumed normal operations from its first schedule on Saturday, after being suspended due to a catastrophic hurricane, with passengers crowding train stations as they return from their summer vacation.

JR Central operator said it would operate an additional train between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka on the Shinkansen Tokaido Line in the morning to address the high volume of passengers.

Previously, the company canceled all high-speed trains between Tokyo and Nagoya, one of the busiest parts of the country's high-speed rail network, on Friday due to concerns over heavy rains and strong winds caused by Typhoon Ampil.

Operations of several high-speed trains on several parts of the Tohoku route, Joetsu, Yamagata and other lines also returned to normal operations on Saturday, as the typhoon moved away from Tokyo and the Tohoku region in northeastern Japan.

Tokyo Station was flooded with people who intend to travel by shinkansen in the morning.

Meanwhile, a 41-year-old man from Saitama near Tokyo was scheduled to fly to the Shikoku region in western Japan on Friday with his family, but had to switch to the train after the flight was canceled.

Japanese Airlines and All Nippon Airways said they canceled hundreds of international and domestic flights to and from Tokyo's Haneda airport and Narita airport, east of the capital.

"I'm afraid the train might not be operating again today so I'm relieved that the train is operating," he said.

"It's hard to re-order our accommodation and secure the seat at the shinkansen," he said.

Nagoya Station is also packed. A Tokyo resident named Yasuhiko Nishiguchi said he could not return home on Friday. After experiencing a similar situation when Shizuoka Prefecture experienced heavy rains last year, he said he made sure he had enough time to deal with train disruptions.