A train derailed at Kintetsu Railway¡¯s Kyoto Station at around 5:15 a.m. Monday. None of the 30 passengers aboard were injured, the company said.
The second and third cars of the four-car local train, the first of the day bound for Kashiharajingu-mae Station, appeared to have derailed shortly after leaving the station. The operator is investigating the cause.
Passengers were asked to get off the train and walk to the platform.
Train services between Kyoto and Kamitobaguchi stations on the Kintetsu Kyoto Line were suspended due to the accident. The railway¡¯s Nara Line and Kashihara Line were also affected, with some trains delayed or suspended, according to Kintetsu Railway. Passengers were requested to use alternative transportation such as West Japan Railway, Keihan Electric Railway and Kyoto City Subway.
The Japan Transport Safety Board dispatched two railway accident investigators to the site.
According to the transport ministry, the driver of the train told the company that they drove the train for about 120 meters after departing the station but stopped it as they had a feeling that the train was being pulled back from behind.
The Sankei newspaper reported, citing Kintetsu Railway sources, that a railway switch might have malfunctioned and forced the train to derail?after departing the station.
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