please click the box below to let us know you're not a robot Get the most important global markets news at your fingertips with a Bloomberg.com subscription Snow fell in the Kanto Koshin region through Wednesday morning and snow accumulation was observed in central Tokyo for the first time this winter please disable the ad blocking feature and reload the page This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies Users accessing this site from EEA countries and UK are unable to view this site without your consent According to the Japan Meteorological Agency the amount of snowfall over the 24-hour period up to 9:00 a.m and 2 centimeters in Tsukuba and Saitama City Snow also fell in central Tokyo from Tuesday night and 1 centimeter of snow accumulation was observed by midnight The JR Chuo Line was temporarily suspended between Takao and Kobuchizawa stations a local train from Ohtsuki to Takao got stuck near Uenohara Station in Uenohara leaving around 30 passengers stranded on board The train returned to Uenohara Station around 7 hours later and the passengers were transported by bus The highway road closures that had been implemented from Tuesday evening to prevent cars from getting stuck on the Metropolitan Expressway Central Loop Line Our weekly ePaper presents the most noteworthy recent topics in an exciting © 2025 The Japan News - by The Yomiuri Shimbun Taken from the second issue of Scenic Views an independent interiors magazine by photographer Lorena Lohr and writer Louise Benson see an exclusive photo series of car and truck interiors in Dover and Japan Words & photography: Federico Radaelli 13th October 2020 This text is taken from the second issue of Scenic Views These photographs were taken over a period of two years at the Dover crossing in the south of England and at service stations and car gang meetings in rural regions around Tokyo truck drivers wait at roadside cafes and long-haul car parks to board the ferry and continue their journey across mainland Europe The interiors of their vehicles are occasionally customised with keepsakes or posters but more often they are functional and austere extravagantly decorated trucks (often called ​“Dekotora”) display neon lights and high-shine metallic elements on the interior and exterior of the vehicle Truckers will typically adapt their work truck spending vast sums of money on decorations while still using it to transport goods such as vegetables and fish ​“Bōsōzoku” gang meetings take place across Japan bringing together members who are united by their interest in highly customised cars and motorcycles Vehicle interiors are elaborately decorated with special modifications and unusual paint jobs they now conduct peaceful meetings (largely in secret) but their numbers have declined in recent years It’s kilometer 42.8 on the Linear Chuo Shinkansen’s Yamanashi test line between Uenohara and Fuefuki we had the opportunity to participate in the premium event for the media’s first test drive of the model L0 (read “El Zero”) system The event provided rides on both the new model and the conventional model on the same day allowing us to experience and compare the new model’s advances and its 500 km/hour running speed The new model had been running on the Yamanashi test line since August but this was the first time it had carried a large number of passengers on a test run it was raining when the event was held on October 19 appreciated even more so because the number of participating media outlets had been narrowed down as a countermeasure against COVID-19 The test drive took place on a seven-car Linear train with five conventional L0 series cars on the Fuefuki side (in the direction of Nagoya) The other two cars were the new L0 series improved cars which made up the first two cars on the Uenohara side (in the direction of Tokyo) one is immediately struck by how bright it is This is due to the glittering sound-absorbing panels made of glass that are attached to the wall and ceiling but illuminated by LED (light emitting diode) lighting designed to reduce the glare so as not to interfere with reading or working on a computer How to improve the brightness of cars was a key issue in the Linear as the trains will run mostly in tunnels in what is known as the "deep underground," with only a short distance at ground level so it is important to make the interior of the car bright As an added comfort for business travelers the armrests of the seats are equipped with USB outlets and the table is foldable and light and drink holders with a refined final touch that give the overallimpression of sophisticated When you sit down the soft cushions provide firm support all the way from your head to your back depth of the seats and height of the backrest have been expanded to match those of the Green Car [first class] on the Tokaido Shinkansen.”  As a regular passenger of the normal Shinkansen I felt I could be lulled into sleep just sitting on such comfortable seats I found the interior finished in a different way The ceiling and walls were covered with a film-like material like the one used for the Tokyo Dome roof and the luggage rack was integrated into the interior space in a neat and futuristic design Indirect LED lighting filtered through this layer of material producing "a warmer atmosphere than the previous vehicle," according to the spokesman The membrane material was said to be effective in reducing the reflected noise inside the vehicle as well as suppressing other noise It doesn’t look different from train cars on the Tokaido Shinkansen Compared to the innovative new model vehicle it lacked the uplifting feeling of the Linear experience you immediately feel the difference between the old and new seats the seat surface is clearly harder and more upright without giving passengers the feeling of being “enveloped” The actual size is only a few centimeters narrower than seats of the new cars We rode both the new model vehicle and the conventional vehicle making one round trip for each to measure their comfort levels The main purpose was to compare their noise and vibration levels which has been a major issue for commercial operations placed a bottle of water on it to check the shaking level in the moving train In both the new model and the conventional model my paper documents spread on the table slipped off even in the new model probably because of the comfortable seat with cushions that wrapped you up to your ears the new model gave the overall impression of being a smoother experience The next issue was the noise levels of the vehicles We were told that at around 150 km/hour the train would switch from running on wheels to levitating with superconducting magnets So I concentrated on detecting the differences in the sounds between the old and new systems The windows of the Linear train do not open I felt my body lifting and the sound of the wheels disappeared and changed to a "su-su" sound This noise became louder as the train speed increased and eventually turned into a "go-go" sound the noise level was lower inside the new model car It was louder than the inside of a regular Shinkansen but the overall impression was quieter than the inside of the conventional Linear car The new model vehicle with its round -shape front has reduced the air resistance by 13% This is believed to be effective in reducing wind noise and has been applied on other conventional trains to reduce noise pollution for the overall railway network director of the Yamanashi Maglev Test Line "Reducing noise and vibration are the key to improvement." Although the new vehicle promises all the good things one could wish for it is still not clear which commercial vehicle design will be adopted Although test drives will continue until 2022 The Shinagawa-Nagoya route is likely to be delayed due to concerns about the environmental impact of tunnel construction in Shizuoka Prefecture JR Central has planned the opening for 2027 It could be a while before traveling on the Linear will become a reality (Read the story here in Japanese.) You must be logged in to post a comment ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " Your browser does not support JavaScript, or it is disabled．Please check the site policy for more information National Report (JR Tokai) canceled all Tokaido Shinkansen services between Tokyo and Nagoya on Aug 30 due to the heavy rain and strong wind caused by Typhoon No For the stretch between Nagoya and Shin-Osaka with approximately two trains per hour in each direction All seats on these trains are unreserved except for those in a few first-class cars Faster Nozomi and Hikari trains will not be in service all services between Mishima and Nagoya have been canceled For the sections between Tokyo and Mishima only Kodama trains will be operated on a reduced service JR Tokai has also warned that there may be further planned suspensions or service disruptions until Sept Although no suspensions are currently scheduled for Sept there is a chance of lengthy service disruptions (JR West) has canceled all Sanyo Shinkansen services between Hiroshima and Hakata on Aug The number of trains operating between Shin-Osaka and Hiroshima is significantly reduced and direct connection to the Tokaido Shinkansen has been canceled Services between Shin-Osaka and Hakata will operate with reduced frequency on Aug Direct connections to the Tokaido Shinkansen will be canceled (JR Kyushu) has canceled all services of the Kyushu Shinkansen on Aug The company has announced that the Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen will resume services in the afternoon with reduced frequency There have been widespread disruptions for other train networks as well has canceled all of its Romancecar express trains on Aug had canceled 296 domestic flights to and from airports in the Kyushu Chugoku and Kansai regions and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport In response to train cancellations of the Tokaido Shinkansen the airline will fly 10 additional flights to and from Haneda grounded a total of 385 domestic and international flights to and from airports in Kyushu Kansai and other regions scheduled for Aug has announced that the Chuo Expressway has been closed in both directions between the Hachioji Interchange and Hachioji Junction The inbound lane of the Chuo Expressway between Hachioji Junction and Uenohara Interchange is also closed a total of 11 expressway sections were closed Closed sections include the Tomei Expressway between the Shizuoka Interchange and Yaizu Interchange and the Shin-Tomei Expressway between the Shin-Shizuoka Interchange and Fujieda-Okabe Interchange it is anticipated that an additional seven expressway sections will be closed on Aug These sections include the Tomei Expressway between the Yaizu Interchange and Yoshida Interchange and the Shin-Tomei Expressway between the Shin-Fuji Interchange and Shin-Shimizu Junction 10 makes landfall in Kyushu on a northeast path train runs canceled as Japan braces for Typhoon No air services scaled back in Kanto region during typhoon rail traffic halted after Noto earthquakes Information on the latest cherry blossom conditions Please right click to use your browser’s translation function.) A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II In-house News and Messages No reproduction or republication without written permission A Japanese maglev bullet train owned by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) made history last week by hitting a top speed of 590 k/h (366 mph) on a test run through the Yamanashi prefecture in central Japan This beats the previous speed record of 580 k/h (361 mph), which has been standing since December 2003 and a spokesperson for JR Central says they expect to beat the record again tomorrow when a second test run could hit speeds of 600 k/h The train can achieve such ridiculous speeds because rather than running directly on tracks it's suspended above the rails using very powerful magnetic levitation - "Maglev" is an abbreviation of "magnetic levitation" Right now, the tracks run between Uenohara and Fuefuki - two cities west of Tokyo - but JR Central plans to expand this to connect Tokyo with Nagoya in the country's centre by 2027. That's when they say the public will be able to ride in this new, super-speedy model, but it'll likely be limited to 500 km/h compared to the speeds we get elsewhere in the world As Fiona MacDonald reported for us late last year "Australia is stuck with trains that generally max out at a comparative crawl of around 160 km/h the top speed of rail transport is around 240 km/h." In fact, the Japanese public have already experienced speeds of over 500 km/h, when an earlier model of the bullet train took 100 lucky passengers on the ride of a lifetime, which actually looked incredibly smooth Source: The Wall Street Journal Please view the main text area of the page by skipping the main menu. The page may not be displayed properly if the JavaScript is deactivated on your browser Japanese version The rom-com genre has been with us ever since the dawn of time hardly does it ever present something unique we have seen countless harems and love triangles that have had the same basic and repetitive formula Only a few of those were able to stand out amongst many such as Oregairu with its unique protagonist and narrative That’s where Who says I can’t have a RomCom in real life? comes in – a title used to mock and use the past knowledge of romances By featuring meta commentary on the rom-com genre it breaks the 4th wall and mocks the repetitive tropes while seemingly being one itself a young boy who really loves rom-coms and wishes to make one in reality or a girl living next door that could spark a rom-com life in his world That is why he decides to remake reality from the ground up and create his dream romance comedy life He makes a perfect plan consisting of a confession straight out of a rom-com which The cute girl in his class gets the role of the “Main Heroine” sporty guy gets the “Best Friend Character” The beautiful upperclassman is the “Senpai Heroine” and so on.On the other hand – to contrast Kouhei’s out of place thinking the female lead Ayano has a very grounded and real approach She is someone who does not fit in any of the roles and serves as the logical one the “cast” that Kouhei chooses are only humans and Kouhei cannot puppet them as if they were characters from a rom-com it feels like a parody despite not strictly being one It is a promising title that fans of the rom-com genre would surely find compelling and refreshing to read I do hope it will get an official English license at some point in the near future All images: Author’s Twitter© 初鹿野 創/椎名くろ/ガガガ文庫 Yamanashi — Teleworking facilities renovated from a former inn and a traditional Japanese house have opened in Uenohara The city supported the renovations of the buildings and expects that the facilities will be able to meet the demand for working remotely which has become more commonplace amid the novel coronavirus pandemic a facility renovated from a former two-story inn near the north exit of JR Uenohara Station held a preopening ceremony for related parties a company in the city that operates the facility which had not been used for more than 10 years The second floor is equipped with four rental offices as well as a shared office that can accommodate 16 people On the first floor is a community space that can accommodate about 20 people and is intended to be used for lectures Located on a hill overlooking the Katsura River the facility is named after the former inn The full-scale opening is scheduled for May you can work while enjoying the scenery and the four seasons We also want to make it a place where new and local residents and students can interact with each other.” a Tokyo-based company that provides unlimited multilocation living services for a fixed fee as well as access to more than 230 other facilities nationwide has a shared office and three private rooms where people can stay Members can work while enjoying the garden on the premises and the surrounding natural beauty who attended the opening events for both facilities “I hope people will make use of these facilities and learn about the advantages of Uenohara leading to more people relocating here to take up permanent residence.” 2025 A wildfire that broke out on Saturday in the mountains spanning Japan’s Kofu City and Fuefuki City in Yamanashi prefecture remained uncontained local time on Saturday in the mountain area including the deployment of helicopters from neighbouring prefectures and the Self-Defense Forces the fire has not been brought under control and the fire did not pose an immediate threat to residential areas at the mountain’s base Authorities have continued to monitor the situation with plans to resume firefighting at dawn on Monday Yamanashi prefecture has seen multiple wildfires since last month including accidents in Ichikawamisato Town and Uenohara City In Japan the peak fire season typically begins in mid-January and lasts around 16 weeks There were 62 VIIRS fire alerts reported between 15th of January 2024 and 13th of January 2025 considering high confidence alerts only This is low compared to previous years going back to 2012 extending over 43 per cent of its land area Japan lost 12.5 kha of tree cover from fires and 903 kha from all other drivers of loss The year with the most tree cover loss due to fires during this period was 2012 with 1.22 kha lost to fires — 2.7 per cent of all tree cover loss for that year.(Agency) Hurtling across Japan at 500 km/hour sounds pretty terrifying to us. But Japan has now built a maglev train that's capable of hitting 501 km/h, and the BBC footage (above) of the first 100 passengers riding the train looks much smoother than we'd imagined The trial journey only stretched 42.8 km along a route between Uenohara and Fuefuki But this is just the first part of a track that will eventually connect Tokyo with Nagoya in the country's centre That journey currently takes trains around 80 minutes but the new maglev technology will cut the time in half to just 40 minutes The full route is expected to be completed by 2027 Once up and running, the train will be even faster than the Shanghai Maglev Train which is currently the fastest commercial train in the world which is an abbreviated name for magnetic levitation works by actually floating a train a short distance off its tracks and powering it forward using magnetic fields This means the trains are unaffected by weather and they're also smoother and often quieter than the trains we're used to now Which explains why the record-breaking ride in Japan looked like so much fun - we love the excitement of the passengers when the train hits 501 km/h And if you think this is impressive, China is working on creating a maglev train inside a near-vacuum that can travel 2,900 km/h - three times faster than a plane - due to the lack of air resistance Australia is stuck with trains that generally max out at a comparative crawl of around 160 km/h and in the US the top speed of rail transport is around 240 km/h the future of transport is looking pretty bright Source: BBC, Vox Tohoku Shinkansen services between Tokyo and Sendai were suspended in both directions from around 7:50 a.m inconveniencing thousands of passengers traveling for work or pleasure Full service resumed on all lines at around 12:30 p.m with some delays and cancellations of trains The cause was blamed on an oil leak from a track inspection vehicle The leak was discovered at around 5:05 a.m on the section of track between Fukushima and Shiroishizao services on the outbound line between Fukushima and Sendai were suspended from around 7 a.m. and both inbound and outbound lines between Tokyo and Sendai were suspended from around 7:50 a.m Services on the Yamagata Shinkansen between Tokyo and Fukushima were also suspended on both lines with a total of 18 trains canceled as of 10 a.m a line of people formed at the ticket windows at JR Tokyo Station to request refunds was planning to travel to Fukushima with his two railway-loving grandchildren "We are very disappointed because we have been looking forward to this trip for over a month," Miyamoto said a 37-year-old company executive from Uenohara was scheduled to head to Morioka on a business trip with two colleagues "I didn't think it would be stopped for this long," Brand said (This article was written by Kentaro Uechi and Kenichiro Shino.) Bullet train services reopen between Tokyo and Fukushima Quake-hit bullet train line to fully resume before Golden Week Tohoku bullet train resumes one month after major quake Shinkansen lines halted from morning after power outage Tohoku bullet train services to fully resume on April 14 Tohoku bullet trains resume operation with fewer trains News Release 2007 – Honda held an official groundbreaking ceremony for its $550 million automobile plant to be known as Honda Manufacturing of Indiana LLC (HMIN) and revealed that the new plant's 2,000 associates will produce the popular and fuel efficient Honda Civic sedan when mass production begins in fall 2008 It was also announced that HMIN's first president will be Yuzo Uenohara who previously held the position of senior vice president at Honda Manufacturing of Alabama Honda first announced plans to build the new Indiana plant June 28 with an annual production capacity of 200,000 vehicles In an effort to meet strong customer demand site preparation for the new plant is complete and basic construction has already begun on a 1,700-acre tract in Decatur County "In Indiana we will create an efficient and flexible manufacturing environment that is a great place for everyone to work," said Koichi Kondo president & CEO of American Honda Motor Co. and chief operating officer of Honda's North American Regional operations we are breaking ground for more than an auto plant We are breaking new ground in our relationship with the people of Indiana and our customers in America." for a limited number of non-production positions in the fields of automotive engineering information technology and administration and has received more than 6,000 responses The hiring process for production associates will not begin until late 2007 Honda is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to recruiting candidates from diverse backgrounds we will ask the associates of Honda Manufacturing of Indiana for their ideas to make our products better and the plant the safest place it can be," said Uenohara the new president of Honda Manufacturing of Indiana "This is the Honda way and this spirit will guide us at Honda Manufacturing of Indiana." Major production processes performed at the Indiana plant will include stamping sub-assembly and final assembly operations Mass production of the 2009-model Civic sedan is scheduled to begin in fall 2008 Honda will make a significant commitment to limit the environmental impact of the new Indiana plant including ISO 14001 international environmental management certification and advanced methods of energy and emission reduction with the goal to be a "zero waste to landfill" facility Honda built more than 1.16 million Honda and Acura passenger cars and trucks in North America last year or more than 77 percent of the more than 1.5 million Honda and Acura vehicles purchased by U.S The Civic sedans produced in Indiana will feature fuel-efficient four-cylinder engines manufactured in Anna The vast majority of parts for the vehicles made at the Indiana plant will be manufactured by Honda's existing base of more than 600 North American suppliers Honda purchased more than $17.6 billion in parts and materials from suppliers in North America last year making 2007 the 25th anniversary of Honda auto production in America Honda Manufacturing of Indiana facility rendering Japanese version The map was presented at an online meeting of the Mount Fuji disaster management council last Friday The council is made up of officials from the central government and the prefectural governments of Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures The council updated the map based on the latest studies and geographical data The major change was the amount of lava anticipated in the event of a large-scale eruption Recent estimates show that an eruption could release 1.3 billion cubic meters of lava The new map includes far more craters from which this lava could flow than previous editions lava flows could reach an additional 12 towns and cities in the three prefectures including Uenohara City in Yamanashi Prefecture located more than 40 kilometers from the summit Uenohara had been asked to provide shelter for evacuees from municipalities at the foot of Mount Fuji Now the city will have to find shelters for its own residents The new map also shows that an eruption would affect wider parts of Fujinomiya City Previous estimates indicated that lava would reach the city located on the southwest side of Mount Fuji The new data suggests it would also reach the area north of the city center An eruption could also affect transportation and the distribution of goods with the new calculations showing that lava flows could reach the Chuo Expressway and the JR Chuo line Mount Fuji's last eruption began on December 16 It was centered on the southeastern slope and lasted until the following January Records from the period show that a village about 10 kilometers from the crater was destroyed says the group will use the new map to revise evacuation plans for areas that could be affected And though the overwhelming majority of Mount Fuji's recent eruptions have been minor or medium-sized he had some words of warning for those who might underestimate the risk: "These areas should feel a good amount of fear about the situation based on the revised data."