THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
July 1, 2021 at 18:11 JST
A train on the JR Yamanote Line, which loops around central Tokyo (Provided by East Japan Railway Co.)
Twenty railway operators will run extra trains late at night and early in the morning on 64 lines during the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, according to the organizers of the Games.
The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee said on June 30 it aims to make trains less crowded since more than 50 slots allocated for events at the Olympics are scheduled to last until after 11 p.m.
East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) announced the same day that it will run extra trains and push back the schedule for its last trains on 28 lines between July 21, two days before the Opening Ceremony for the Olympics, and Aug. 8, the day of the Closing Ceremony.
JR East’s last trains in the greater Tokyo metropolitan area will depart an hour or two later than usual during the period.
The railway operator decided to take the measures after the Games’ organizers announced that venues can be filled to half of capacity for a maximum of 10,000 people.
The cap on spectator numbers is based on the assumption that the central government will lift pre-emergency measures against the novel coronavirus in Tokyo as well as three neighboring prefectures by July 11.
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