October 8, 2025
TOKYO – The out-of-service train that partly derailed in an accident on Sunday had stopped approximately 19 meters before its scheduled position, Tokyu Railways Co. has revealed.
Two trains were involved in a collision and derailment accident at Kajigaya Station on the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo, on Sunday night.
Both the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line, which suspended service in some sections on Monday, and the parallel Tokyu Oimachi Line resumed normal operations from their first trains on Tuesday. About 1,100 trains were canceled after the accident, affecting approximately 650,000 passengers, according to the company.
The accident occurred around 11:05 p.m. on Sunday. A 10-car train bound for Shibuya Station from Chuo-Rinkan Station collided with a 10-car train that was out of service and parked on a storage track at Kajigaya Station. The rearmost car of the out-of-service train went off the tracks.
According to Tokyu Railways, the out-of-service train received a signal while traveling on the storage track to avoid going too far forward due to excessive speed. As a result, it stopped approximately 19 meters before its correct position.
This distance is equivalent to one car length, resulting in the out-of-service train’s rearmost car protruding into the path of the upbound train. Tokyu Railways and the Japan Transport Safety Board are investigating the cause of the accident.
Back to everyday life
Working commuters and students expressed relief that service returned to normal first thing on Tuesday.
“I felt grateful for the trains, which I’d taken for granted,” said a 19-year-old student at a design college in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo.
“I was relieved to wake up and find the trains running normally,” said a 65-year-old employee from Takatsu Ward, Kawasaki, who walked 50 minutes to work on Monday. “If they hadn’t been running today, my employer planned to arrange temporary buses.”
Railway president apologizes
“We have caused great inconvenience and concern to a large number of customers,” President Seiichi Fukuta said at a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday. “We take this matter very seriously. We deeply apologize.”
Regarding the cause of the accident, the company indicated that an error in the setting conditions for signals sent to trains within the station caused the collision.
AloJapan.com