The flow of New Year holiday travelers returning to Tokyo before work resumed for most people today reached its peak on Wednesday, leaving airline flights, bullet trains and expressways operating well beyond their usual beyond capacity.
Traffic backs up at the Niiza toll gate on the Kanetsu Expressway in Saitama Prefecture.Authorities said congestion on public transportation was worse than a year ago, when some refrained from traveling due to concerns over the Y2K computer problem.
Most domestic flights bound for Tokyo's Haneda airport were booked to capacity and people formed long lines at ticket counters in the hope of obtaining tickets through last-minute cancellations.
Airline officials said a large portion of the Tokyo-bound flights today are also reserved to capacity.
Operators of the Kansai International Airport in Osaka said the number of overseas travelers returning to Japan via the airport will peak today, when some 22,800 people are expected to land.
Japan Railways group companies said congestion aboard non-reserved cars of a Joetsu Shinkansen bullet train from Niigata to Tokyo meant that it made the journey with 240 percent of seating capacity. Most other Tokyo-bound bullet trains were also over capacity.
Traffic was backed up for up to 40 km on the Tokyo-bound Tomei Expressway in a section around Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, at around 4 p.m.
Traffic information officials said similar congestion could be repeated today.