Photo/Illutration Workers make their way to their office in Sapporo on Feb. 7 after the prefectural capital saw record snowfall the previous day. (Kengo Hiyoshi)

SAPPORO--Record snowfall paralyzed transportation networks here and in its neighboring region, forcing a railway operator to cancel all train services to and from the prefectural capital on Feb. 7.

In Sapporo, a record 60 centimeters of snow fell over the 24-hour period through 2 p.m. on Feb. 6.

As of 1 p.m. that day, the accumulated snow from the preceding days in the city reached 133 cm at some locations, surpassing 100 cm for the first time in eight years.

It is not uncommon in Hokkaido for some train lines to be partially suspended due to heavy snowfall.

But the cancellation of all services connecting Sapporo, a city with a population of 1.76 million, on Feb. 7 posed a rare insurmountable obstacle to most commuters. 

It affected large numbers of people commuting to Sapporo for school and work as well as people heading to New Chitose Airport, a 37-minue train ride from Sapporo.

Hokkaido Railway Co. said a total of 704 services, including those connecting Sapporo with Otaru and Tomakomai, were canceled on Feb. 7 as JR Hokkaido workers could not clear the deep snow from railway tracks.

The company said services from and to Sapporo on Feb. 8 will also be canceled.

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Hokkaido Railway Co. employees respond to travelers' inquiries at JR Sapporo Station after all services to and from there were canceled on Feb. 7. (Kengo Hiyoshi)

Sapporo’s transportation networks have been in deep disarray since the morning on Feb. 7 although the day dawned clear and sunny.

Streets were gridlocked with motorists. Many bus services were canceled in the city.

“Roads are narrower now due to accumulated snow,” said an official with Hokkaido Chuo Bus Co. of the reason for not running buses.

The company said it does not know when it can restore full services.

At New Chitose Airport, 70 travelers had to spend the night there on Feb. 6 after their flights or trains to Sapporo were canceled.

The Sapporo branch of the Japan Automobile Federation said it received 4,324 requests for emergency roadside assistance over the 24-hour period through midnight on Feb. 6.

Of these, 3,582 cases involved snow covering vehicles. JAF workers could rectify the problems in only 284 of the 3,582 such cases.

Breakdowns where motorists could not start their engines after their batteries died accounted for 99 cases. Sixteen of these were serviced, according to JAF officials. 

The average wait time for roadside service came to 173.3 minutes as the branch office was inundated with calls for help.

(This article was written by Yuta Kayaba, Sakura Kawamura, Kaede Sano, Ichiro Matsuo and Shuji Shida.)

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Workers clear snow on rail tracks before JR Sapporo Station on Feb. 7. (Provided by Hokkaido Television Broadcasting Co.)

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