Japan is Nippon 日本語
When things go wrong

Train Suspensions, Delays and Missing the Last Train

How to check service updates, use transfer transport, get refunds and delay certificates, and get home after the last train has gone.

In an emergency call 110 (police) or 119 (fire and ambulance).

First, do this

  1. Check which section is suspended from station signs and announcements, or the rail operator's official service updates.
  2. Use a route-finder app to look for a way round on other lines.
  3. If you have a ticket, ask station staff whether "transfer transport" (permission to reach your destination on other lines) is available.
  4. If a shinkansen (bullet train) or limited express is cancelled or badly delayed, ask about a refund at the ticket office.
  5. If you miss the last train, take a taxi. Taxi-hailing apps can be used in English too.

Checking service updates

When the trains stop, start by checking the rail operator's official service updates. The phrase "unten miawase", which you will often see on station and on-train displays, means services are temporarily suspended.

JR East's English service status page reports delays of 30 minutes or more, including expected delays, from 4 a.m. to 2 a.m. the following day (shinkansen included). Parts of the page are AI-translated and it does not refresh automatically, so reload it to see the latest information. JR West and JR Central also have English service status pages. Osaka Metro reports suspensions of roughly 10 minutes or more line by line, and also posts them on its official X account.

JR East's official app, "JR East App" (in Japanese), shows service updates for the main railways across Japan and offers route searches that reflect current delays. During major disasters, the X account of JNTO (the Japan National Tourism Organization), "@JapanSafeTravel", posts weather warnings, the latest transport information and more.

Finding another route

JNTO suggests "Japan Travel by NAVITIME", "Japan Transit Planner" (by Jorudan) and Google Maps as apps for checking routes and fares. In cities, several companies often run lines in the same direction, so you may be able to switch to a line that is still running and get to your destination that way. If you are unsure, ask the station staff at the staffed window by the ticket gates.

What is transfer transport?

Furikae yuso (transfer transport) is an arrangement that lets people who have already paid for a ticket over a suspended section travel to their destination on another company's lines instead. As Osaka Metro explains it, there is no extra fare within the transfer transport section, but if you ride beyond it you pay a separate fare.

There are some catches. At Osaka Metro, IC card tickets (including Mobile Suica) are not covered by transfer transport. Even when services are suspended, it can take a while for transfer transport to start, or it may not be offered at all. If you take a route outside the transfer transport section, or a taxi, you pay for it yourself. Which tickets and sections are covered depends on the rail company and the situation, so always check with station staff.

Getting a refund

JR West asks passengers who want a refund because a train was cancelled, or because a shinkansen or limited express was delayed by two hours or more, to ask at a "Midori-no-madoguchi" (JR ticket office) or to call an operator from a "Midori-no-kenbaiki Plus" ticket machine. If you process the refund yourself on a ticket machine, you may be charged a fee.

On JR West's online booking service "e5489", if the train you booked is cancelled you are refunded automatically, with no fee, from the day after your planned travel date. When a typhoon is approaching or there are major delays or cancellations, refunds may also be made available with no fee. JR East's English service status page also links to its rules on changing and refunding tickets.

Delay certificates

A chien shomeisho (delay certificate) is a document showing that a train was late. When local trains on JR East's conventional (non-shinkansen) lines are delayed by roughly 5 minutes or more, JR East posts delay certificates on its website (there is an English page, covering the past 45 days). They show the longest delay on each line; they do not prove how late a particular train was, or that you were on it. Limited expresses and similar trains are not covered. Osaka Metro also posts delays of 5 minutes or more on its website, rounded up to the next 10 minutes.

If you miss the last train

According to JNTO, most trains stop running late at night, around midnight. If you miss the last train, your main option is a taxi. JNTO recommends "S.RIDE", "Uber", "DiDi" and "GO" as taxi-hailing apps you can use in English. Fares are metered by distance, and a late-night surcharge applies from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Taxis in big cities generally take credit cards, but in rural areas some take cash only.

Tips

  • If you are travelling late, check the time of the last train in an app before you set off.
  • To use transfer transport you may need a ticket for that section, and some companies do not cover IC cards, so check with station staff.
  • If station announcements and signs are only in Japanese, open the rail operator's English service status page.
  • Download and register a taxi-hailing app before your trip, not once you are already stuck.

Sources

Checked: 29 September 2026