TTokyo

Chuo Line Christmas nightmare

  • December 25, 2025

Merry Christmas. Another day, another jinshin jiko. Today, during the worst rush time, in a pouring rain – at this point, why JR invested into mostly empty Green Cars on this line instead of platform fences?? Or at least some alternative transport options…

Trains are interrupted daily, and the volume of human accidents in the last two months is just crazy. I know it’s a busy line but it’s getting unusual.

What’s going on? Sending love to everyone caught in this hell today.

by ihatestrongzero

10 comments

  2. i understand your frustration as it pisses me off just as much but i find it crazy how our immediate thought is to make it harder for one to end their lives (platform walls) versus remedying the reasons people wanna do it in the first place (i know we’re mostly powerless).

    hard times for everyone really, stay strong out there.

  3. I work as a RTC back home, holiday seasons are the worst for trespassers strikes. It happens all year round don’t get me wrong. But people get very lonely.

  4. The calculus on gates, while partially a cost one, is also a space issue. A lot of Chuo line stations do not have the space necessary for platform doors.

    But realistically speaking the number of accidents has not been particularly high, though it can feel that way. I would just say save a thought for the poor soul who tried to (and maybe did) end their life.

  5. > why JR invested into mostly empty Green Cars on this line instead of platform fences??

    Money. Profits. Unfortunately this is what gets prioritized when private, for-profit companies run things.

    EDIT: Not sure why this is so downvoted. This is simply the reason from a business perspective and they even admit to it. Same reason they’re closing Midori-no-madoguchi all over, raising fares next year, making all-reserved seats on trains… I’m just answering OP’s question, not saying it’s a good thing or anything I agree with.

  6. Not sure about this particular instance but not all human accidents are suicide. I was once a “human accident” that delayed the Sobu sen because I fainted on the train. The train couldn’t continue until I woke up and the staff escorted me to the station office 

  8. Regarding the lack of gates, it’s apparently due to differences in car lengths and also some stations (eg Shinjuku) have platforms that are either too narrow or can’t support the weight of the gates-

    https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/s/Y4kie74f4v

    It’s amazing how careless people are on platforms, at Yoyogi the other day I noticed at least a dozen umbrellas, gloves etc on the tracks in the early morning. I guess it can’t be helped with how much you gotta shove sometimes, especially now with dumbass tourists standing on the platform and blocking the door so you can’t get off without physically pushing them out of the way (happened to me last week, literally standing outside the door so I couldn’t get off…).

  9. I go drinking now and then with a couple friends that work at JR.
    first thing is they absolutely want and try hard to reduce deaths.

    They mentioned something where many suicidal people choose famous places to kill themselves – for example the Golden Gate Bridge- and in a similar phenomenon people are attracted to the Chuo Line.

  10. I went to Tachikawa tonight and would have taken the Chuo line but had to do three transfers to get there because of the “accident.”

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