The peak period for outbound passengers on Japan Railway trains over the New Year period will fall on Dec. 29-30, while Tokyo-bound trains will peak Jan. 3, according to bookings made for Dec. 28 through Jan. 6, according to the JR group.
A total of 3.17 million seats, up 9 percent from the comparable period last year, have been booked, marking a sharp rise for the first time in 12 years, the JR group said Friday.
JR's passenger services are operated by Kyushu Railway Co., Shikoku Railway Co., Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai), West Japan Railway Co. (JR West), East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) and Hokkaido Railway Co.
Among the most crowded routes will be the Nozomi and Hikari super-express trains on the Tokaido-Sanyo bullet train line, linking Tokyo and Hakata Station in Fukuoka.
Almost all outbound trains are fully booked from the afternoon of Dec. 28 to the morning of Dec. 31, while almost all trains bound for Tokyo are reserved between the afternoon of Jan. 2 and the afternoon of Jan. 6, the company said.
JR East and JR Tokai officials said it is not yet clear whether if people are opting to travel within Japan rather than going abroad due to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.