NAHA - Japan's Obon travel rush reaches its outbound peak on August 8 with severe disruption continuing in Okinawa, where Typhoon No. 13 has forced widespread flight cancellations and suspended local transportation even as airlines prepare special services to begin clearing stranded passengers later in the day.
The Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen are entering one of their busiest days of the summer holiday period, with all Nozomi services operating as reserved-seat only between August 7 and August 16. Morning trains on August 8 had already been expected to be close to full as families and other travelers headed for hometowns and vacation destinations.
The main disruption remains concentrated in Okinawa, where normal air services have been heavily curtailed following the direct impact of Typhoon No. 13.
JAL said as of 5 a.m. on August 8 that flights serving a wide range of airports across Okinawa and the Amami islands remained affected. Kumejima, Miyako, Tarama and Ishigaki airports were scheduled to remain closed throughout the day, while flights serving Naha, Amami Oshima, Yakushima, Tanegashima and other islands also faced cancellations or disruption.
ANA had canceled its normally scheduled August 8 services serving Naha, Miyako and Ishigaki, but improving conditions around Naha prompted the airline to arrange 40 special flights for later in the day.
The additional ANA services will connect Naha with Haneda, Shizuoka, Chubu Centrair, Osaka Itami, Takamatsu and Fukuoka, with the first special flights scheduled to reach Naha from around 3 p.m. Operations at Miyako and Ishigaki remained canceled for the day.
JAL was also preparing to restore some capacity. The airline planned a special Naha-Kansai flight departing Okinawa at 7 p.m. and was considering resuming regular services from around 6 p.m., depending on weather conditions.
Skymark planned additional services between Kobe and Naha and between Naha and Haneda. The Naha-Haneda special flight was scheduled to arrive after 1 a.m. on August 9, after normal public transportation from Haneda Airport had finished for the night.
Naha Airport itself was scheduled to reopen at 11 a.m. on August 8 after closing during the height of the storm, allowing airlines to begin the difficult process of moving passengers stranded by consecutive days of cancellations.
Local transportation in Okinawa was also disrupted at the start of the day.
The Yui Rail monorail remained suspended from the first service on August 8, with operators saying services would resume only after the typhoon had passed and safety conditions could be confirmed.
Okinawa's route buses were also unable to resume normally from the morning. Operators said the timing of services would depend on inspections of roads and conditions after the storm.
Sea travel continues to face disruption as well. Ferry routes linking Kagoshima, Amami and Okinawa have been canceled because of high waves and strong winds, with some cancellations extending beyond August 8 as operators wait for sea conditions to improve.
The disruption comes at one of the most difficult times of the year for airlines to absorb a backlog of passengers. August 8 is a major outbound travel day during the Obon period, meaning replacement seats are scarce even as carriers begin adding special flights.
Road travel is also entering its peak period. The Japan Road Traffic Information Center expects heavy congestion on outbound expressways on August 8, with another busy outbound day forecast for August 13.
The weather threat to holiday transportation may continue after Typhoon No. 13 moves away.
Typhoon No. 15 is forecast to strengthen as it moves toward eastern and northern Japan and could approach or cross the Tohoku region around August 11, potentially affecting travelers during the middle of the Obon holiday.
The Japan Weather Association has warned that weather-related impacts on highways could increase in Hokkaido and Tohoku around August 11, while southern Kyushu and Okinawa remain at risk from Typhoon No. 13 through the earlier part of the holiday period.
For August 8 travelers, the contrast is sharp: Shinkansen and expressway traffic across much of mainland Japan is reaching its planned holiday peak, while passengers traveling to and from Okinawa face continuing cancellations, suspended local transport and a gradual, weather-dependent restoration of air services.
Source: OTV
