Major train stations and airports nationwide saw massive crowds Thursday as New Year's holidaymakers began returning to their homes ahead of the resumption of business today.

Many airline and railway officials said, however, that they believe many people have taken an extra day off to extend their winter holidays through the weekend, and that the congestion will likely continue through Sunday.

The number of people transferring at JR Tokyo Station grew steadily Thursday afternoon, exacerbated by the delays in trains coming from central Japan, which saw some of the heaviest snowfall so far this season. Delays on the Tokaido Shinkansen Line were as long as 90 minutes for some trains, according to Central Japan Railway Co. officials.

Two Joetsu Shinkansen Line trains coming from Niigata Prefecture saw the number of passengers in non-reserved carriages reach 200 percent of capacity from Echigo Yuzawa Station.

As for air traffic, most flights bound for Tokyo from such cities as Sapporo and Fukuoka were full.

According to All Nippon Airways officials, reservations on Thursday's flights to Haneda airport in Tokyo stood at 95 percent, while the figure was expected to rise to 98 percent on Saturday and Sunday.

Expressways leading into Tokyo also experienced traffic jams. As of 4 p.m., traffic was bumper to bumper for 24 km on the Tomei Expressway from Ayase, Kanagawa Prefecture, and for 23 km on the Chuo Expressway from Otsuki, Yamanashi Prefecture.