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Tag - traffic-accidents

 
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July 24, 2026
 

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TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS

Among Japan's police forces, Osaka Prefectural Police had the largest number of members slapped with disciplinary action between January and June, at 27.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Jul 23, 2026
155 police officers and personnel disciplined in Japan over six months
The most common reason for discipline was acts related to relationships with the opposite sex.
Kaoru Mitoma¡¯s agency said he is taking the incident very seriously and has expressed concern and apologies toward the injured cyclist.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Jul 9, 2026
Kaoru Mitoma involved in minor traffic accident in Tokyo
Prominent Japanese soccer player Kaoru Mitoma hit a cyclist in Tokyo while driving at around 8.45 a.m. on Wednesday, according to a statement from his agency.
Mukdahan provincial governor Worayan Bunnarat said the case of eight monks being killed by a truck should serve as a wider warning on road safety in Thailand.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 2, 2026
Eight Thai monks killed after boy drives truck into procession, police say
Police said the boy had taken his parents¡¯ pickup truck without permission before losing control of the vehicle and crashing into the monks.
A bill to revise the law on punishment of acts causing death or injury by automobile driving is enacted at a plenary session of the Lower House on Thursday.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Jun 25, 2026
Japan enacts bill that sets numerical standards for dangerous driving
The bill stipulates the charge of dangerous driving be uniformly applied to accidents causing death or injury by drivers exceeding the speed limit by over 50 kph on ordinary roads.
The driving skills test for older drivers was introduced in 2022 with the aim of preventing accidents by assessing the decline in their physical functions.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Jun 25, 2026
Japan to review elderly driving test after higher accident rate
The rate of accidents caused by drivers who took the test was 2.8 times the level recorded for those who were not subject to it, according to a study released Thursday.
Yudai Togitani speaks to reporters in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture, on Thursday after a ruling was handed down on a woman who killed his wife and left his child disabled in a car accident.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Jun 18, 2026
Driver jailed for killing pregnant woman, leaving unborn child with disability
Prosecutors had difficulty interpreting the existing law to regard a fetus as a victim independent from the mother.
The share of drunken-driving accidents involving specified small motorized two-wheel vehicles, including electric kick scooters, is "extremely high," Japan's annual white paper on traffic safety noted.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Jun 12, 2026
10% of e-scooter accidents in Japan resulted from drunken driving in 2025
Of the 386 accidents involving specified small motorized two-wheel vehicles, including electric kick scooters, drunken driving was blamed for 43 of them.
According to Japan's transport ministry, around 70,000 cases of roadkill occurred on state-managed roads in fiscal 2022.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Jun 3, 2026
Japan to boost efforts to prevent roadkill
According to the ministry, around 70,000 cases of roadkill occurred on state-managed roads in fiscal 2022.
A building housing the Tokyo High Court in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
May 22, 2026
Bus operators found guilty again over 2016 crash in Karuizawa
The ski tour bus crash in the Nagano Prefecture town killed 15 people, mainly university students, and injured 26 others.
A father carries a child on a <i>mamachari</i> bicycle in September 2018. Parents say the new ¡°blue ticket¡± system has made them more mindful of the rules, but has also heightened concerns about child-seat use and children starting to cycle on their own.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Society / FOCUS
May 22, 2026
How Japan¡¯s new ¡®blue tickets¡¯ are putting cycling parents on edge
Parents say the new system has made them more mindful of the rules, but has also heightened concerns about child-seat use and children starting to cycle on their own.
A vehicle modified to look like an unmarked police car before being driven by a man suspected of drunken driving is seized by Tokyo police on Wednesday.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
May 21, 2026
Saitama man arrested over alleged drunken driving of fake police car
Ren Nakamura, 23, is suspected of driving the vehicle, which had been modified to look like an unmarked police car, and crashing it into a utility pole.
Japan implemented a new system in April that penalizes minor bicycle traffic rule violators with a "blue ticket" that carries a fine of up to ?12,000.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
May 14, 2026
Cyclists issued ¡®blue tickets¡¯ in over 2,000 cases since April 1 rollout
The new tickets incur fines of up to ?12,000 for traffic rule violations, with the aim of improving cycling safety and preventing accidents.
Koji Terao, the Hokuetsu High School teacher in charge of supervising the school&#039;s soft tennis team, speaks at a news conference in Niigata on Sunday.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
May 11, 2026
High school in Niigata had arranged buses through local firm before fatal crash
A microbus carrying 20 students of the soft tennis club of Hokuetsu High School in the city of Niigata crashed into a guardrail on Wednesday, leaving one student dead.
Transport ministry officials enter Kanbara Tetsudo in Gosen, Niigata Prefecture, on Thursday to conduct an on-site inspection.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
May 8, 2026
Microbus driver arrested after crash kills student in northeastern Japan
The vehicle was carrying 20 members of a school soft tennis club from Niigata Prefecture.
Under the new blue ticket system, cyclists will have one week in which to pay fines for minor traffic violations.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 24, 2026
The language around Japan¡¯s new bike rules leaves no room for ¡®maybe¡¯
Blue tickets are now being issued for minor traffic offenses, but you have to watch you don¡¯t get scammed.
The Japan Transport Safety Board has proposed setting up multi-language warnings and pictograms at railroad crossings as foreign visitor numbers surge.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Apr 23, 2026
Multilingual alerts, pictograms proposed for railroad crossings after tourist accident
The accident occurred at a railroad crossing near Saga Prefecture¡¯s Sueyama Shrine, a popular tourist spot.
Family members Takuya Matsunaga (right) and Yoshinori Uehara offer flowers during a memorial service on Sunday for Mana and Riko Matsunaga who were killed in a car crash in Tokyo&#039;s Ikebukuro district seven years ago.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Apr 20, 2026
Investigator urges people not to forget deadly 2019 Ikebukuro crash
The incident attracted significant attention and prompted many older drivers to voluntarily give up their drivers¡¯ licenses.
The government adopted legislation at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday to revise auto laws by setting numerical standards for speeding and alcohol levels to clarify the application of dangerous driving offenses, aiming for enactment during the ongoing parliamentary session.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Mar 31, 2026
Legislation adopted to set numerical thresholds for dangerous driving
Application requirements for the crime of dangerous driving are vague under current rules, and many cases have ended with convictions for negligent driving instead.
Starting April 1, cyclists in Japan will be subject to new traffic rules.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal / EXPLAINER
Mar 25, 2026
What to know about Japan¡¯s new traffic rules for cyclists
Starting April 1, the ¡°blue ticket¡± system aims to reduce violations by issuing fines for minor offenses such as using a phone while cycling or ignoring stoplights.
The Nonobori tunnel on the Shin-Meishin Expressway in Kameyama, Mie Prefecture, on Friday
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Mar 21, 2026
Hiroshima transport company searched after six killed in tunnel accident
The Mie Prefectural Police department is investigating the company¡¯s management system for ensuring the health and safety of its employees.
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse&#039;s brain.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Japan weighs regulating Pokemon cards amid trading mania
A Pokemon event is held in Jakarta on July 11
Low-income families in Japan cut food and air conditioning during summer break
Yumiko Watanabe, the chairperson of nonprofit Kidsdoor, explains the results of a survey in Tokyo&#039;s Chiyoda Ward on July 1.
Iran strikes on CIA facilities prompt questions about possible Russian role
Iranian drones are displayed in an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on Jan. 13, 2025.U.S. officials have acknowledged that Russia has ?provided targeting ?and other support for Iran in its drone strikes on U.S. targets in the Persian Gulf region.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan&#039;s relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces&#039; Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.
Summer has arrived in Japan and so have hot sleepless nights
Amid the heat and humidity in Japan, a good night¡¯s sleep is growing increasingly elusive without the heavy use of air conditioning.
Maya Ongaku¡¯s DIY dream is getting bigger
The members of Maya Ongaku ¡ª (from left) Tsutomu Sonoda, Shoei Ikeda and Ryota Takano ¡ª grew up on the Shonan Coast south of Tokyo and have been friends since their school days.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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