Hokkaido Mobilizes 1,000 Snow Removal Workers to Restore Rail Services

Jan 31, 2026 | News On Japan

HOKKAIDO, Jan 31, 2026 (News On Japan) - On January 28th and 29th, JR suspended overnight trains departing from and arriving at Sapporo Station to focus on large-scale snow removal work along the tracks after heavy snowfall, affecting around 500,000 passengers and exposing a series of operational challenges.

At New Chitose Airport, the final train bound for Sapporo on January 29th was moved forward, prompting Hokkaido Airports and the regional transport bureau to operate emergency bus services to assist stranded passengers.

During this period, intensive snow removal was carried out along railway lines, with the workforce increased to more than 1,000 personnel over the two days.

The work was completed as scheduled, allowing JR to resume normal operations from January 30th.

At a press conference on January 30th, JR President Watanuki Yasuyuki revealed that the series of service suspensions had affected approximately 500,000 passengers and apologized to users, saying: "Due to the impact of the heavy snowfall, many train services were suspended. We sincerely apologize."

Watanuki also revised his earlier assessment of coordination with Hokkaido Airports, which he had described as having gone well at a January 26th briefing, acknowledging shortcomings by stating: "The information provided to Hokkaido Airports was completely insufficient. We would like to review both how information is shared and the quality of that information."

He added that overly optimistic forecasts regarding service resumptions were another issue and said JR plans to improve how information is communicated to passengers during major disruptions.

Source: 北海道ニュースUHB

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