Photo/Illutration Passengers climb through the windows to escape from a Keio Line train, which made an emergency stop at Kokuryo Station in Chofu, western Tokyo, on Oct. 31, 2021. (Provided by a passenger)

In 1898, a night train leaving Osaka arrived early the next morning in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture.

While the train was stopped at Fukuyama Station, chaos broke out when a conductor discovered the body of a slain passenger in a second-class compartment.

The victim was a captain of the Imperial Japanese Army, according to the Tokyo edition of The Asahi Shimbun of the time. Robbery appeared to be the motive and two men were arrested.

The case deeply shocked Japan at the dawn of the nation’s railway travel.

The railway company swiftly acted to ensure passenger safety. It selected “only the most trustworthy and strongest” among station attendants and had them thoroughly patrol the train cars.

One attendant patrolled every car during the day and two attendants patrolled at night. Since then, various safety measures must have been tried.

Two years ago, however, two stabbing incidents occurred in rapid succession on the Keio Line and the Odakyu Line, which serve the Tokyo metropolitan area.

And on June 26 and 27, the first court hearings were held, respectively, for the two suspects, who have been charged with attempted murder and other crimes. In each case, the prosecution’s opening statements eloquently described the terror of passengers who had nowhere to flee.

An indiscriminate assault in the “closed space” of a train car can terrify anyone, even on a familiar line. The other day, a disturbance occurred on the Yamanote Line over a knife that belonged to a professional chef. A number of people tripped and fell, sustaining injuries.

This autumn, the transport ministry intends to require surveillance cameras be installed on trains, mainly on Shinkansen and other lines servicing the nation’s three major metropolises.

The type of installation will vary from one railway company to another, but every company is complying with the ministry’s mandate.

As train passengers, I suppose that we are now living in an era that requires us to remain alert to our surroundings while the railway operators rely on surveillance cameras to keep us safe.

Author Hyakken Uchida (1889-1971) wrote about the 1898 murder on the train in his essay titled “Kiteki Issei” (One blow of a train whistle): “(The incident) instilled dread of night trains in the hearts of children.”

Roughly a century and a half has elapsed since the arrival of trains in Japan, but the pursuit of railway safety continues.

--The Asahi Shimbun, June 28

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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