Japan: Girl plays subway driver in Japan – 23 trains are delayed

Japan
Girl plays subway driver in Japan – 23 trains are delayed

No departure: In Japan, a little girl caused delays.

©Getty Images

It was probably a unique opportunity: In Japan, a little girl secretly snuck into the driver’s cab of a subway train. The excursion had unpleasant consequences for the otherwise punctual traffic in Kobe: 23 trains were delayed.

There is hardly a country that is as famous for its punctuality as Japan. In recent years, reports have caused a stir in which companies have apologized for a 25-second early departure or a train driver’s salary has been reduced because he arrived at the station a minute late.

In this environment, it is a catastrophe of unprecedented proportions that 23 trains were delayed in Kobe at once. The reason for this: Not a natural disaster, a technical malfunction or even a police operation – a little girl has managed to whirl the operations upside down.

According to the Japanese newspaper “Yomiuri Shimbun”, a train driver left his cab at the Seishin-chuo terminal station and did not lock it behind him. The ideal moment for a great adventure, thought a little girl traveling with her: she sneaked into the driver’s cab and played around with the switches there. Among other things, she managed to turn off the headlights and the scoreboards.

Girl makes it into the engineer’s cabin twice

Disgrace for the transport company: The girl was quickly spotted, but made it back into an unlocked driver’s cab on a neighboring track. That was enough to slow down operations properly: by the time the operator had ensured that all trains were still functional and safe, 23 trains had already been delayed by 18 minutes.

The company is now apologizing to the approximately 3,000 passengers affected: “We sincerely apologize for the problems caused. We will ensure that the doors are locked,” said the Kobe Transport Office.

tvm / dpa

source site-1