Travel cancellations hit Japan as typhoon nears

Hundreds of flights and some bullet train services suspended through Friday and possibly beyond

Hundreds of flights and some bullet train services will be suspended as Typhoon Ampil makes its way towards the main island of Japan on Friday, complicating travel plans during the country’s annual Bon summer break.

Japan Airlines cancelled 28 international flights bound for the US, Australia and other locations, disrupting travel for about 5,000 passengers. All Nippon Airways scrapped plans for 20 flights scheduled for Europe and North America, affecting some 4,000 people.

Disruptions from tropical storms this time of year have become an annual occurrence in Japan and other countries in the region. They’re also more severe, causing factories to halt production and companies telling employees to stay at home. The latest typhoon, categorised as a severe tropical storm, will be at its closest around midday Friday, according to weather forecasters. 

Curbs on air travel within the country are set to affect approximately 95,000 passengers, the two airlines said in separate announcements. ANA cancelled 281 domestic flights, affecting 60,600 passengers who were to fly to areas including Osaka, Fukuoka and Okinawa. JAL terminated 191 domestic flights, disturbing plans for about 34,000 travellers.

The weather agency urged residents to be careful of high waves, landslides, flooding of low-lying areas and rising or overflowing rivers in eastern Japan, telling people to pay close attention to information to be provided by local authorities. 

Bullet train services between Tokyo and Nagoya will be halted throughout Friday as the typhoon brings heavy rain and strong winds, according to Central Japan Railway Co. Operations between Shin-Osaka and Nagoya will also be reduced.

East Japan Railway, which operates bullet trains to Aomori, Akita and Kanazawa, also said there may be disruptions on some routes in the Kanto region surrounding Tokyo.

East Nippon Expressway, which manages expressways in the Kanto region and Hokkaido, warned that some roads may be shut from Friday through Saturday, and asked travellers to reconsider their plans.

On Thursday, train stations and airports were already crowded with travellers who changed their itineraries to leave a day earlier after learning about the planned cancellations of flights and train services.

Mika Nakamoto, a 19-year-old university student from Kobe in western Japan, was scheduled to travel on Friday to attend a music event in Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo but switched her ticket to a day earlier.

“It was a hassle to change the ticket because most of the seats were booked,” she said at the Shin-Osaka Station.

“My plane won’t fly, and my sister will not be able to come,” said Yuki Nishiyori from Chiba, who was planning to meet her family in Yamaguchi prefecture by flying out of Haneda airport on Friday.

Although the risk of the strong typhoon making landfall is currently not high, it is expected to bring violent winds and heavy rainfall as it nears eastern and northeastern Japan on Friday and Saturday.

As of 6pm Thursday, the typhoon was located around 260km south-southeast of Hachijo Island, travelling northward at about 20km per hour.

In the 24 hours from 6pm Thursday, the typhoon is forecast to bring up to 300 millimetres of rain to the Kanto-Koshin region, which includes Tokyo, 200mm in the Tokai region and 120mm in the Tohoku region.

From 6pm Friday, 200mm of rain is expected to fall on the Kanto-Koshin region, and 150mm in the Tohoku region over the following 24 hours.