The Train Crash That Exposed Japan’s Toxic Work Culture

A train in Japan was 1 minute behind schedule. For Japanese standards, this was more than acceptable. Having hurried too much, the train will now never make its destination.
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📺 Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:04 The Journey leading up to the crash
5:10 The Crash
5:35 The Aftermath
6:48 Investigation of the Train
9:23 Investigation of the Driver
11:18 Conclusion
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🎵 Music:
An album of the songs I wrote for the video can be found here:
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📃Sources & Credits:
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[@Natogoon]

To think that in most of the worlds countries, a train only being one minute late is seen as some divine miracle.

[@rohitsharma66]

Exactly.

[@Porschedude8]

Agreed!

[@XMysticHerox]

I mean it's not, it's just not made a big deal of. I feel like people are also forgetting this is local light rail not some long distance train.

[@muhamadsayyidabidin3906]

​​@@XMysticHeroxwell, as you know commuter train have highly flexible schedule and they're more likely to get delayed than long distance train, right? So people complaining about getting late in their local commuter train is just a buffoons. I mean, I don't want to sound judgemental but if you got to work everyday on the same method on transport over and over again, you'll have like... Mental schedule about it? If you know your train could possibly get delayed a minutes or two, why don't you just go... One minute earlier? Public service people are some of the most stressful people on the planet because they received lots of complaint everyday while being paid so little.

[@fireonyxiaz]

if the train is late arriving to the station earlier won't do shit...

[@vitoc8454]

Japan: "We apologize, the train left 1.5 minutes late." Philippines: "Be thankful that the train was running this week."

[@XouZ88]

I've even heard of it happening at 18 seconds delay.

[@Endwankery]

More like be thankful the train even exists

[@KiraFriede]

Germany doesn't count anything below 5 minutes as a delay.

[@jasonbrody1619]

BS? LRT2 at the very least is consistent everyday. Time it arrive is not perfectbut not overly late like 30 mins

[@MrShem123ist]

LRT 1 be like: There's no schedule. If there's a train, hop in.

Japan: - Train must be EXACTLY on time. France : The train will be EXACTLY on time. On its own time, when it decides to arrive, if there's no strike.

[@blakksheep736]

"A French train is never early and never late. A French train arrives exactly when it means to."

[@bootquake]

A German train has to be at least five minutes late, because passengers plan for that, if there's no strike ..

[@ldxtr9050]

Germany: The train wont be on time, but EVERYBODY outside Germany will think it will be.

[@shruti07]

In India, what do you mean by schedule? we never head bout it. Train will come when it wants n leave when it wants. (Sometimes it gets delayed for more thn 18 - 20 hrs for no good reason)

[@GeekProdigyGuy]

it's like French workers are allowed to be human beings or something

[@Swcher]

2 seconds late in Japan: world-ending catastrophe 2 hours late in India: better than average

[@PurePain_1]

20 hours late in NYC: Miracle

[@dhananjay3512]

😂😂

[@G.G.Fofficial-qk4tx]

Bro I swear this is true trains get delayed daily at least by 1 hour on one occasion my train was delayed by 2 whole days

[@frustationoverloaded5976]

not that much, but 2 minutes late is definitely miracle. 5-10 minute late is average

[@wertikalowitz8875]

India is not for beginners

[@QuakeGamerROTMG]

"You have to perform PERFECTLY with less than a single MINUTE of delay for 9 hours straight on 7 hours of sleep" "Oh nooooo I can't believe this led to tragedy, what a freak accident!"

[@isuller]

Not 7 hours of sleep: 7 hours between shifts! That's ridiculous - I don't even understand how that can be legal...

[@JohnDoesSports]

@@isuller in my country they recently changed the law so that you could not have a rest period of less than 11 consecutive hours between shifts in a 24-hour period.

[@pastione2835]

@@isuller thats Japan for ya. Visiting is nice but working in the general field is like throwing yourself away. And at this point there was even no mention of the legal payd days off you are considered doing work at your workplace.

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@pastione2835 Sounds a bit like when Americans are afraid to take their piddly one-week vacation time.

[@arbaux]

@@JohnDoesSportssame goes for poland. minimum 11h break time between shifts. also you can't work more than 8h a day, unless you allow for longer shift with extra pay for overtime job. in reality lots of people work 12h a day with no benefits, but they still get their minimum 11h period for rest

[@joecrammond6221]

hard to believe just being one minute late could cause a driver to panic about the consequences he'll be facing leading to all this

[@NationalistsRuinAmerica]

that's the dark truth behind the orderly nature of japan. inhumane treatment of workers

[@Gigachad-mc5qz]

thats what you get for treating workes like slaves. companies run by idiots who never worked in their entire life

[@DavidShepheard]

The company sent the guy to management bullying sessions and killed him inside.

[@jamesclarke8564]

If you know Japan, you'll know how real this fear is.

[@MrBrander]

Sadly in Japan things cumulate extremely fast. If a train is late by 1 minute, that means 100 persons will be late and in worst case scenario each of those 100 persons provide services to 100 persons each. That means 10 000 persons will be already late and delays tend to cumulate too so it's just going to be a big mess. So in a way I understand that because there just are so many people in Japan but the schedules shouldn't be so extremely strict that being late will escalate to situations like these. There should be some pure waiting time in the schedules so hiccups in schedules could be smoothed out with them. Humans aren't machines humans are living beings and their performance fluctuates.

[@oneangryboi408]

People like to praise Japan for it's supposive productivity, but don't realize that its people are dying to meet such impossible demands.

[@97Crazysteve]

First day on Earth?

[@tsm688]

aren't they actually incredibly unproductive? this is not their glory days

[@oneangryboi408]

@tsm688 They're extremely unproductive. They waste a lot of time on tedious things. White collar workers have a tradition of staying at work for long hours but produce little to no valuable work. A lot of their work actually can be done in a few hours. But for some reason, their culture will add unnecessary components and overwork their workers. It's why a lot of workers when they travel to the US or other western countries are surprise by how productive and less time wasting they are on work. Though the West still have issues of their own, and I do admire quite a bit of things that Japan does well, like their sanitation practices. It's a shame that not even through death of its people, the culture is not completely changing itself over.

[@oneangryboi408]

@@97Crazysteve No.

[@not_abot213]

@@tsm688 Depends on the worker you’re talking about. For example, new/low-level employees (especially in the black companies) are very much overworked.

[@napalmbhoji]

you know shits real when the the time starts with "6:11 am" instead of sweet innocent numbers divisible by 5

[@mage3690]

Imagine if there were seconds on that number. That would be a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions.

[@XouZ88]

Like any transportation companies really. I often start my shift's at 04:31 am

[@Truevanna]

​@@mage3690In fact, the timetable used within Japanese railway companies is accurate to within a quarter of a minute, which is 15 seconds.

[@mikapirhonen]

In Turku, Finland 🇫🇮 the bus stop timetables are shown in 2 second accuracy. The buses can be at the stops 5 minutes sooner or later though.

[@matteofalduto766]

Meanwhile in Italy this morning i was 90 minutes late to work because someone managed to steal some of the copper wires constituting the overhead lines powering the trains... Asking the conductor for explanations he calmly but slightly annoyedly answered "it is what it is..." as to say "What do you expect me to do? To get out and push?"

[@fueyo2229]

In Spain half of the time the train doesn't arrive or the driver forgets to stop at your station xd

[@torpedo996]

COPPER WIRING!!!

[@MmmmJuicy]

lol "oh silly me, why didn't I get out and push the train so you would not be late!! Oh woe is me for inconveniencing your majesty..." sounds too sarcastic than "it is what it is"

[@mammutMK2]

Meanwhile in Germany: the train disappears into a black hole, as a not arriving train can not be late

[@hunormagyar1843]

​@@mammutMK2Gets sent back in time to perform duty at this one place in... Poland, was it?

[@nightowldickson]

It's better to arrive late than not arrive at all

[@dasy2k1]

Sadly not in Japan. Being late is so disrespectful to superiors that it will absolutely harm your long term future

[@charalinedreemurr2953]

Failure is not an option. In japan, If you fail at anything, you're better off hiding away for the rest of your life because you could face being disowned, and ostracized.

[@NothingXemnas]

The problem is that people make high demands for punctuality, and they are not wrong. Ask anyone if they would want trains and buses to arrive at the right time every time; consistency makes lives better for everyone. One train coming late is an excuse for others to do the same. I am NOT saying I am in favor of this at all, but I am realistic enough to know that the company will ask the public if they want trains to lose accuracy for safety, and vote of majority will be against it; it was a one-off accident, it isn't worth changing if the chance of casualty is so low (also why people keep taking airplanes as mode of travel; a single accident can kill 400 people, but they are very rare). In fact, more people die in car accidents over a month than people die to train accidents in a year or more. People WILL take the train, even if the work conditions to keep one running are so abhorrent.

[@d0lph1n63]

@@NothingXemnasthe problem is that the people who say that never ride public transportation as they either live within walking distance of their work, have their own car or have someone else do the driving for them.

[@mahuba2553]

my seargent always told us this when we had to wake up at 4 am and get ready to get to the barracks, some of the dudes were always late and had to ride motorbikes to get there, you can guess how dangerous it is to go fast in one of those.

[@Kardia_of_Rhodes]

"Excuse me sir! We're gonna be a minute late because of you!" ... "Ma'am, your life is literally in my hands. Please sit down and shut up."

[@akusen9]

the fact that the first cabin was smashed so badly that first responders didnt recognize it is just wild.

[@heatherduke7703]

It was basically inside the building, I think

[@IndigoRyu]

The first car was completely hidden, because the second car acted as a wall around the building.

[@mudrapatel7007]

Least overworked Japanese worker:

[@bantiray404]

😂

[@tknapawit]

Not funny

[@HarambaeXelonmuskfans]

@@tknapawitIt wasn’t meant to be, obviously, clearly.

[@diablo.the.cheater]

There is a reason why adult light novels have protagonists that die due to being overworked

[@strider7198]

​@@tknapawit cry about it

[@daveboatman4024]

First rule of any business, don’t kill the customer.

[@nekolalia3389]

The tobacco industry: 👀

[@nekopop8159]

The vape industry: 🤭

[@SATA_here]

The gun industry: 💀

[@StackND]

The social media industry: ☹️

[@AdvikTekkieTalk]

I was gonna say somethings but your repliers already have!

[@RATsnak3]

It did not “end japans toxic work culture” it just changed things for this particular industry. The toxic work culture still exists.

[@originaldcjensen]

That's probably why the title reads "exposed"

[@RATsnak3]

@@originaldcjensen ?? What does it matter what it says in the title?? In the video they said it ended japans toxic work culture!

[@CorrosiveCitrus]

Where?

[@halycon404]

One thing it said is that almost the entire upper management team changed within a few years as the old generation was stepping down. That entire reeducation system was put in place by new executives. That's a thing in Japan as well. When the head steps down his team steps down with him. It's a mass retirement of all the people with experience for the next generation to take over. It always causes problems in companies for the first decade of the changeover. But that's the way Japan does things.

[@Sir_Bucket]

​@@RATsnak3 they don't even say that in the video. He's skeptical that it even changed the company's culture

[@RandomBoy0101]

Here in Mexico on the roads (it doesn't have much to see but it's something) there are small signs on the sides of the road that say "an hour late is better than a minute of silence."

[@RedFoxSkull]

Oh, that’s powerful

[@Brian-tn4cd]

Where have you seen them? Around Guanajuato i haven't seen signs like that

[@RandomBoy0101]

@@Brian-tn4cd , south of mexico.

[@ellesmerewildwood4858]

Yes, the driver was at the controls of the train, but the toxic company with the toxic workplace culture was in control of the driver.

[@funkyfox7996]

is this sarcasm? hard to tell without vocal inflections.

[@Animeshelly0120]

@@funkyfox7996he’s blaming the toxic company and toxic work culture as the main culprit. he is saying the driver is the one at fault but the biggest one at fault is the company and the stress over being on time.

[@ickebins6948]

@@Animeshelly0120 It's down to the driver...

[@ellesmerewildwood4858]

@@funkyfox7996 No, not sarcasm. I means that many companies rule their employees with fear of repercussions, the driver's fear of shame over losing one minute would bring him repercussions, none the least of which would be shame. Most people do their best to accommodate and often go beyond their limits to try to do the right thing. Yes, the driver was at fault to a great degree but the company put the fear of failure into him, in essence, the company was in control of the driver.

[@asmyself4021]

​​@@ickebins6948To do what? Being fired? He's being brainwashed to be perfect for the CEO, it's a culture thing.

[@nicholasdove5109]

The passenger knocking on the driver window to demand an apology announcement for a 1 minute delay is the ultimate Karen that probably contributed to this catastrophe

[@Train.ka-pa]

That's normal in Japan.

[@pemo2676]

@@Train.ka-pa it shouldnt be

[@user-rk2ss8ft4r]

​@@pemo2676It's sadly true... Japanese passengers cannot tolerate even a minute of delay because their employers won't tolerate it...

[@user-S853]

Well they also probably have their own Karen who will demand an explanation as to why they were a minute late, so…

[@shroomer3867]

@@user-rk2ss8ft4r Maybe get ONE train ride EARLIER??? Like you know, the rest of the world??? (Not bashing you, just the toxic workculture)

[@ichliebebaeumeweilbaum]

Meanwhile in germany people are genuinly surprised when a train ever arrives on time

[@JohnYoo39]

I took a train twice in Germany. The first time, the Platform changed 15 minutes before departure time, so I missed it. The second time, the train was canceled.

[@sivaramakrishna1208]

Now go for third time….the train will not be there

[@danielzamora5272]

I have no idea what you are talking about. I took trains from Duesseldorf and Frankfurt, and back. Always on time.

[@hannak5585]

​​@@danielzamora5272in 1971?? Because in 2024 my train from Cologne to Munich that I take quite often is more likely to be 2 hrs late than on time. I was actually once told to get out at Frankfurt because the train just... Broke down. Won't drive anymore. Just take the next on- OH WAIT it can't drive because the broken train is blocking the platform, woopsie daisie

[@gb2983]

In the UK we have the idea of German efficiency, so I always thought the trains must run on time there. Having worked and travelled over a decent portion of the country now, I can absolutely say that German efficiency doesn't apply to train. Not that uk is any better, and at least the price for a journey in Germany is reasonable.

[@admiralcapn]

Literal advice for Amtrak passengers: "Don't plan anything the day your train is supposed to arrive. Assume 6-8 hours of delay and you might be surprised by getting in 'early.'"

[@doomsdayrabbit4398]

Blame the freight railroads and their insistence on three mile long trains staffed by two people, rather than a more sensible length and more reasonable staffing.

[@abelsuisse9671]

That was so interesting. Crazy how different the rail culture is in Switzerland, where the national rail operator always insists that if there's a delay due to infrastructure issues or bad timetabling, the driver must not worry about it and just needs to keep going without compromising safety, even of the delay persists.

[@MaD_fX]

Same in the UK. Main principle is "safety first", everything else comes after. Sometimes the rules and procedures may even seem a bit over-cautious but I'll definitely take that over taking any risks so that statistics look good.

[@OscarOSullivan]

Same thing here in Ireland both Translink or Iarnród Éireann.

[@user-ne8gp2fm2d]

I'm pretty sure passenger safety is enforced in Japan as well.

[@theporschetiger]

Meanwhile in the US, cost-cutting goes first, THEN safety.

[@dzonikg]

In Serbia there is no work culture at all lol .WHen i was student i use trains couple off times.Trains stop in some village to pick up passenger and should be like 3-4 minute stop but it turn in to almost a hour minutes becase driver and conductors went to restroraunt in village to eat .Or driving with a bus and then bus driver drives totally other way to finish his some private business

[@RobertCoberly9999]

107 people lost thier lives over 1 minute and 30 seconds of delay. I have more of a delay on my way to pick up dinner sometimes. This is insanity.

[@Bt-cq6te]

Agreed. Our country is way more overworked but trains come late everytime, in fact i don't think i've ever seen a bus come on time. We're singapore btw

[@bettyxplace3196]

I'm also from Singapore and I don't even care if the trains or busses were late All I wish is to get to my destination

[@Bt-cq6te]

@@bettyxplace3196 Exactly, If i were worried about reaching on time i would simply set off earlier

[@KeiS14]

Singapore trains are usually on time because the majority of their rail network is automated. I think it’s worth bringing up the fact that there are differences in system and operating condition. Trains in Singapore usually come 4-7 minutes apart and stop for less than a minute, in addition to having shorter average route length. Singapore trains being more than 1 whole minute late is extremely abnormal and usually finds itself receiving media attention (it’s usually the result of a breakdown or fault) “Trains come late every time” is a gross exaggeration and far from statistical reports.

[@samuraiboi2735]

​@@Bt-cq6te where i live the bus mostly comes on time unless road traffic causes it to come late either way the bus driver does come as fast as possible even during traffic.

[@blacklight683]

It never fails to amaze me how a completely ordinary day is 1mistake away from beginning your last day alive, it doesnt even have to be your mistake Only 1 mistake is all that it takes for an ordinary day to suddenly become a tragedy

[@mrska1965]

Except there was a whole series of mistakes. In civilized society (with safety standards) there has to be always more than 1 mistake to cause somebody's death.

[@ser_igel]

if you're interested in aviation, there's a channel called Mentour Pilot where Petter talks about different aviation incidents he often talks about the swiss cheese model: every incident in a field with a bunch of safety measures like aviation or healthcare is most often caused not by one human error but by a chain of human errors and/or equipment malfunctions we can even see it here: 1. driver being sleep deprived/fatigued 2. driver's motivation to be faster than allowed to not get a punishment from the JR 3. overshooting the station caused by the previous two which could've been an accident by itself and which pushed the driver to go even faster 4. the curve being far away enough for the train to reach the derailment speed 5. the line having old ATS system which didn't trigger emergency braking cross any of those lines and the incident might've been avoided cross two of any of those lines and the incident wouldn't happen at all

[@Thornbloom]

I work outdoors around moving vehicles and one of my regulars teaches driver's ed. He always tells me to stay safe and I always answer that's up to everyone else.

[@SubvertTheState]

​@@Thornbloom Yeah, I would say this train accident was due to company culture (probably Japanese work culture in general). I admire perfectionism and implement it as much as I can in my work. One thing that has always plagued me and I feel is dumb is punctuality. Everywhere I've worked has had a pretty good overlap in shift changes and time for handing off, 30 minutes. I would pretty regularly be about 5 minutes late to the meeting's start time, but I wasn't often the last one. Never was it a cause for delay except one time where I needed to digitally sign on to a training seminar and my name came up in the roll. I walked in and they just had to select my name again. But I got fired from that place even though I was in the top 10% as far as productivity, expertise, safety etc. I never called off. And after I was fired they reset the points for everyone in the whole plant. Bullshit

[@101Volts]

Someone's *one* mistake was nearly ramming into my car, *the only one on the highway at the time,* with the speed of... I don't know, 85 MPH in a 55 zone at the end of the on-ramp? I only avoided it because I looked in the passenger mirror and slammed the brakes in time while going about 50 MPH. Even then with me slowing to 30 or 25 MPH, I barely missed them. Would I have died? Maybe not, but it would not have been good. They were going to side-swipe me. And (I am not exaggerating here,) when I looked at the clock right after, *it was 4:20 PM.* Maybe I heard them coming because I had the windows open a little bit? But I had a habit of looking in mirrors a lot, which I think is more of the reason why I noticed. I still have that habit. Now I want to look at on0ramps for some fool. Nobody was behind me for a long distance, nobody else would have witnessed the accident. But my Dad was in another car maybe half a mile behind, yet he probably wouldn't have seen it happen since I think he was behind a curve.

[@mickeypopa]

Someone from Japan made a comment on another video how their father or grandfather (can't remember which) once told them "It's better to be 1 minute late than to lose your life in 1 minute". I have a feeling they were subtly referencing this train disaster.

[@Delectable_Medley]

That's Japan alright... Worked there for a decade. Workers rights and mental well-being is not a thing over there in many companies. A poor young Japanese woman was so overworked and bullied in my office that she ended up committing suicide...

[@4T3hM4kr0n]

not in isolated incident either, the suicide rate is very high in japan due to this. Don't get me started on Black Companies...

[@Ibrahim_B.]

​@@4T3hM4kr0n Are japanese car manufacturers such as Toyota and Mazda from them?

[@w1z4rd9]

@@Ibrahim_B. No. Those you probably haven't and won't hear are the ones.

[@mpazinambao2938]

🙁

[@deathbringer9893]

​@@Ibrahim_B. funny enough I hear that the car companies are pretty nice in japan

[@SFSPerseverance69420]

JR: our trains were late by 40 seconds, we will make sure that will not happen anymore MÁV: our trains set a new record, by being only 59 minutes late, breaking the old record of 2 hours

[@botond3]

Bát disz gáj nóz öbáut Máv, bikóz híz alzó hángérien

[@fa18superhornet]

In which country and city is MÁV?

[@SFSPerseverance69420]

@@fa18superhornet hungary

[@fa18superhornet]

@@SFSPerseverance69420 Out of curiosity, does Hungary have international rail?

[@SFSPerseverance69420]

@@fa18superhornet yes

[@maltehoffmann3621]

A train isn't even counted as late in the statistics until it is 6 minutes late in Germany.

[@eled1]

Can't forget about the amount of trains that are later than that over there no offense

[@vickypedia1308]

​​@@eled1our trains are a joke, no reason to withold the offense

[@FinnishArsonist]

I have ADHD, and it's already so damn difficult living with it out here in canada - there are many people who think me being late is not prioritizing them. It's something that has sent me into some dark, dark places - the feeling of trying again and again to do stuff on time, trying everything under the sun to change and yet I just... can't. There are days where it leaves me feeling like I, as a human being, am defective. And that's just the time aspect of it. Trying to imagine what it is like to have ADHD in japan's culture, it breaks my heart

[@Tintelinus]

Tbh I can imagine that its often people with stuff like ADHD and/or Autism that start living as Hikikomori. If society is to hard to live in, it becomes easier to just close the door and try to ignore it.

[@4DDOSED]

​@@navienslavement Making someone feel even more guilty for explaining how life feels like for them on the internet speed run:

[@tsm688]

@@jb3883 bullshit, it exists. That they aggressively marketed meds to children it didn't help, doesn't mean there aren't humans that do respond to the treatment.

[@doctorwholover1012]

@@navienslavementit's not about whose feelings are more valid, it's about being misunderstood by your loved ones and having your intentions assigned a fictional malicious reasoning instead of being listened to and met in the middle about the issue. If I'm five minutes late to meet you, it's not because I hate you, or because I didn't want to see you, or because I'm trying to punish you for something; it's because I struggle with time management. I have adhd and I arrive everywhere panting and with muscle cramps in my legs from pushing myself so fast (I live within the middle of a walkable town area) and people can clearly see I've been running to try to be on time, even if I didn't manage it, and being accused of not caring after all that effort constantly wears you down. Especially considering most ppl with adhd are willing to accept anywhere between 5-15 mins of lateness without explanation, and more with explanation, because we get it, and we don't take it personally. But we never get extended the same grace/courtesy.

[@anjafrohlich1170]

@@navienslavement Yes. It's about me. And you. And them. It's about all of us. Or it's about none of us. But then, what is it about? What is life about if not about us? Who else would be more important? God? The universe? Who would be more important than me, you and them? All of us? Or none of us? You choose, tell me.

[@Mrmegaminergames]

We got shown a video of this accident when I went through driver training in Australia, Pretty much got told "screw the timetable, your job is to maintain the saftey of your passengers"

[@Somebf110enjoyer]

Soo like “Forget your timing, fuck that. Just get there with the passengers not being put in the forever box.”

[@supermagician874]

“please don’t die and make sure that the passengers are safe” Australia “Fuck you” Japan

[@Daniel-yy3ty]

@@Somebf110enjoyer I mean, they'll probably try to gain time at stops, but if the rail is optimized you can't go faster to catch up without disregarding safety Also, who tf decided that it's a good idea for the driver to do a report on the delay while the train is in motion? His only focus during that should be on driving the tin can!

[@its3amagain.]

@@Daniel-yy3ty Well. I am not an expert but I can imagine that it can be important to report delays due to some rails which could change direction automatically at a cross at specific times etc.

[@Daniel-yy3ty]

@@its3amagain. even disregarding that by now all control centers should have complete knowledge of where the trains are when, there are two people on that train One is driving and the other is free to pick up the phone and communicate They were both on the phone. How is two people saying "we are 69 seconds late" different from only one doing so? As I said in another post, we figured out that people on the phone won't pay attention to the road, so we punish hard those that use the phone while driving a car Car drivers are at most responsible for what? 25 people if they mess up? That train at capacity is over 1k, and in case of an accident cars' passengers are way more protected than train ones

[@Toko-Takamiya]

As a Japanese citizen, I thank you for taking up this major accident. Let us not forget that JR West still has many accidents after this accident due to their disregard for safety. If you use transport, please pay respect to the drivers and attendants in front of you and keep a hard look at the company.

[@montesa35]

so that's why JR East still got the best performing railway company of all JR groups. The worst is actually the JR West, considering their old rolling stocks exist with their old fashioned safety systems. JR Kyushu still have more old rolling stocks but they only had fewer railway lines unlike of JR Weat

[@Toko-Takamiya]

@@montesa35 JR Kyushu certainly has fewer routes than JR West, but what is important this time is that it has not invested in safety, despite having a very high number of passengers on its routes. For example, JR East's Yamanote Line had already installed improved security equipment at the time, but JR West had not.

[@maxwang7937]

​@@montesa35 JR Kyushu actually seems to be quite willing to replace old train sets, JR West is the only one of the JR group to still operate lots of JNR-era EMUs to this day (JR Tokai and East also has lots of JNR 211 series but many are built post-privatization).

[@maxwang7937]

​@@Toko-Takamiya Maybe because JR West is the one that's under more pressure from competition and also maintains quite a few lines with basically 0 ridership, so they become so keen on squeezing more value out of existing infrastructure. Ofc that's no excuse for disregarding safety...

[@Toko-Takamiya]

@@maxwang7937 Yes, they are exposed to competition, but so are JR East and JR East, and you are right, that is no excuse.

[@marylizabetha]

I honestly think the straw that broke the camels back was the person knocking on the door. Why would you distract the staff?

[@KontrollerModz]

mans wanted an apology for being a minute late. why they are so worked up, they know life isnt forever?

[@thatpeskyrat]

i dunno. we don’t know the full context and how that conversation went down so it feels harsh to judge given the tragedy of how it all turned out

[@Poldovico]

Train is very slightly late, miss your interchange, now you are VERY late to work. Train company says something, you show your boss, all good. Train company says nothing, your boss won't believe you because trains in Japan are "never" late, you're in trouble.

[@GITAisBASED]

They forget that they are mortal. And it's not even their fault. So much "work" to do, they don't have time to think.

[@baltazarvok2564]

Japanese society is quite horrible. People get stepped on so often that in turn they step on others at every opportunity. That country is like a turd wrapped like a present, looks nice from a distance, but full of shit once you get inside.

[@SubvertTheState]

​@@ajc5930 Ahh, you are confusing values with cognitive prowess. Punctuality is often about appearance, it indicates you place a high value on the activity you are appearing at. I get it. But I've gotten shit canned from 2 jobs for 1 and 2 minute late punches. I just mentally feel exactly how long it takes to get to work and for some reason my brain knows it. Even if I don't look at the clock, and crossing 2 sets of train tracks with sometimes a 1st, then 2nd, then 3rd train can pass by on the crossing. Just need a jet pack or something. But I don't care about 2 minutes and appearance as much as interest and eagerness to know. NOBODY cares to know how things work, so I usually stand out for simply grasping systems. The social dynamics at work are more important than making money. That didn't used to be the case. But if Becky and Sue and Kevin don't like you, you might lose your job. Even if all 3 of them do nothing but smoke at work...

[@samiraperi467]

Japanese *has a word for death due to overwork*. Karoshi. The toxicity isn't a secret.

[@reizayin]

i mean 過労死 is literally "overwork-death" so the fact that it's a word says more about how the language functions than anything. Not that your point is wrong.

[@vast634]

Much too low birth rates, country overaging, but at least they behave "proper" by overworking.

[@ratscallionzzz]

@vast634 tbf who would want to have children if you're overworked. you'd be too tired to be around them properly- you may not even get to be around them at all. low birth rates are almost always linked to societal problems.

[@kitsuneneko2567]

Minor nitpick: karoushi. My sensei didn't understand me when I mispronounced it.

[@nico-sanxx593]

​@@kitsuneneko2567 Karōshi, actually. Pronunciation isn't always equal to writing.

[@X94Caz]

It is physically impossible to be on time all the time, As a bus driver in the UK our limits are " no more than two minutes early or five minutes late" but this is a general guideline, as most services are late we expected the driver to do their best. A accident with passengers injured is the worst outcome. Better 5 min late in this world than 5min early in the next.

[@roderickjoyce6716]

As a bus passenger in the UK, I am very glad you have these guidelines. :)

[@ROBBOBBYJUNIOR]

Good comment

[@RT-qd8yl]

The night before my first day of my first job I was told "If you're 14 minutes early, you're one minute late." I've tried to do most things in life keeping that in mind.

[@yolanda6392]

Bars

[@Celisar1]

It is possible for trains.

[@sheen6855]

So this happened 20 years ago and we still think its cool that Japanese workers have to apologise for a 10 second delay in train arrival times? Oh my we have learnt and changed soooo much havent we. Cant imagine the constant amount of stress the driver and all involved people have to go through.

[@wanderingrandomer]

In the UK, a train I was on was delayed for 15 minutes becuase of "a corregated iron roof on the line". The announcer sounded slightly embarrased to admit it

[@Cureimia]

At the time of the accident, a train geek who saw the accident screamed, ‘One car short!/一両足りない！’ . while others made fun of it, but were correct in pointing out that it was one car short. As the video shows, the missing one car was a bloody hell...

[@vinayaksharma7134]

what is car short??

[@higherquality]

they are short one train car

[@vinayaksharma7134]

@@higherquality so what he screamed i didnt understand his comment

[@vinayaksharma7134]

@@higherquality explain the comment

[@lev7509]

@@vinayaksharma7134 The first railcar was embedded into the building and too crushed to be recognized at first, but the train geek mentioned by the OP knew that the particular model is 7 cars long, and so pointed out the discrepancy.

[@volbla]

_"We thought punishing mistakes would lead to more diligence, but it instead made personnel downplay their mistakes out of fear, and take risks far outside safety margins."_ I don't know if i'm some kind of nerd who consumes way more general trivia than the average person (or japanese CEO), but i feel like it should be common knowledge that positive reinforcement is much more effective than negative reinforcement. Not to mention more humane.

[@shroomer3867]

No, you see, in a Japanese' CEO mind they were surprised people dug a bit deeper than they should've and that their narcissitic and borderline psychopathic decision making would ever get noticed. This is just a blanket statement their lawyer/PR team told them to say because they wouldn't have said it otherwise.

[@CaptainPrincess]

It should be It isnt You would be surprised how hard it actually is to spread information, ESPECIALLY that which makes prideful old people out to be wrong about something, and how they will actively fight against the spread of such information to save their pride, even if the old wrong information is actively harmful, and even if those old people know that pride is dangerous and people will happily burn the world to keep theirs

[@SelfProclaimedEmperor]

When it comes to getting profits for the rich, you're well being Is worth less than dirt to them

[@101Volts]

@@CaptainPrincess "Just like how a dog returns to his vomit, a fool returns to his folly." "The man in the dark can't see where he's going." "As a right man tends to life and living, a fool tends to death." ... The problem (a solvable one, too) is finding out _what_ the problem is, and _not doing it._ "The problems of life come from your heart, so guard your heart with all diligence." Except... "Heart" here might not be the modern day definition. Think of "heart" as your thoughts and how you approach things, and what you do... Think of it as everything in you.

[@tsm688]

it's an old bit of asian history. penalty for being late? death penalty for rebellion? death well guess what, we're **late**. and so an empire fell...

[@hannak5585]

In Germany I'd be happy if my train was late by a minute, or if it came at all. Just walk faster from the station, and be happy that your legs are still present

[@aphsg]

The directing and editing of this video is so good; I was amazed at how tension was built up by using seemingly normal train clips but paired with tense music. The incident was also really well-relayed. Subbed!! This was a really enjoyable video!!

[@robertheinkel6225]

I flew into Japan once, and had to take a bus from one airport to another, to catch my next flight. When you buy the bus ticket, it tells you what time your bus will leave. You cannot get on another empty bus that is already there, and going to the same destination. They pride themselves on their ability to to maintain the schedule

[@lefterismplanas4977]

That's... Ok That's illogical

[@brianwoodbridge88]

@@lefterismplanas4977yes. Japanese culture unfortunately seems to push conformity and obedience over logic and truth. It’s deeply unhealthy

[@brianwoodbridge88]

@@lefterismplanas4977yes it is. Japanese culture seems to encourage people to deny reality. Conforming and obedience come before logic or truth. “The nail that sticks up will be hammered down” and because of this philosophy taken to the extreme people die

[@UnderpaidGuardD9]

They definitely knew this was gonna happen one day

[@limes_I]

Japan ist Not effizient, they are Just strict and follow their Rules. Many of those are illogical.​@@lefterismplanas4977

[@DeadHawk23]

They basically trained their drivers using negative reinforcement to the point it might be considered torture.

[@rkoma3732]

I am Japanese and use the train lines operated by this railroad company every day. It may seem unbelievable to people outside of Japan, but Japanese trains actually operate based on a very precise operation plan, and are usually more accurate than people outside of Japan might think. They are so integrated into daily life that even a delay of only a few minutes can affect the daily lives of many people. This accident has actually led to a review of railroad operation plans throughout Japan, but only to a reduction in the need for extreme speediness, etc. I believe that the required arrival time system has changed little. I myself find even delays of only 5 or 15 minutes bothersome. Many Japanese see this accuracy as a good thing and feel that it is a part of Japan that they should be proud of. However, in the comments on this video, there were many who demanded safety rather than accuracy, and I strongly felt the difference in perception between the Japanese and the rest of the world. In reality, the accident rate on Japanese railroads is not that high, but still, I felt that we need to rethink our common sense, adopt good points from other countries, and become more tolerant of delays and other problems. Thanks for the very high quality and informative video. Thanks for reading this far. From a Japanese high school student DeepL translation was used

[@jpegxguy]

This hits close to home actually. Even though I have no relations to Japan, this incident, and especially the response by the authorities and the company reminds of the huge differences between countries. In Japan at least they made the assessment to say where the blame was and people resigned. Here in Greece on 28 February 2023 two trains crashed into each other, because they were on THE SAME TRACK. The trains in Greece in some areas run blind with no automatic safety systems whatsoever. If there is human error, which there was at that time, there are 0 safeguards to prevent a fiery fireball crash like the one that happened, which cost 57 mostly young people (uni students) their lives. No one from the government or the company that manages the trains - and was obligated to install safety systems - is stepping up. It was all covered up immediately (literally, within days of the incident the local government covered up what was, at that point, the site of an active possibly criminal investigation, with concrete, and moved the derailed cars away, together with the condemning soil and clues. The minister of transport at the time cried fake tears on TV, resigned and then got reelected nicely in the election that was a couple of months later. One year later the authorities are not even looking at this from a criminal point of view and they always try to assign blame to the conductor who made the human error. The Balkans are such a joke, man.

[@xygomorphic44]

As someone who worked in a toxic place where verbal abuse occurred almost daily, I can confirm that it sucks. When you get constantly blamed and berated but not properly guided into improvement, your mental health gets affected, and you start covering up mistakes and covering your ass rather than doing a better job and learning the trade. It's absolutely miserable and counterproductive.

[@nicksafe9800]

doubly true if you are autistic or adhd quadruplly true if both

[@daffers2345]

There's also the issue I faced -- constant verbal abuse and mocking for no discernable reason. The guy just picked on me CONSTANTLY every time he saw me, to the point if screaming a phrase over and over across the warehouse, thinking it was funny. I tried completely ignoring him, so he escalated things by pretending he was going to hit into me with heavy equipment, then laughing and mocking my reaction. I was actually scared to work when he was around. Fortunately, when I complained, he got a major talking-to and has been completely ignoring me ever since. It took two complaints, though. Some folks just don't get it. >=/

[@PBST_RAIDZ]

Happened to me at my last job ended up getting fired but I'm glad I did.

[@steamyninja8881]

Why I left my last job. How do you deal with a nicotine addicted, sleep-deprived supervisor working 2 jobs at the same time, who when asked any sort of question gets angry and berates the employee? Then you have HIS supervisor berate you publicly for declining the request to do more work for the same pay. Ya fuckin leave without giving them even a 24 hour notice. Took two days off, then literally quit like an hour before my next shift as a fuck you to them. Hated that place and most of the employees there too.

[@thichinhphan4010]

Verbal abuse in workplace happens everywhere, it's not special. I got mine from female coworkers and I'm not living in Japan. 🙄

[@Davidgon100]

I could not work in Japan. All my coworkers would stay in the office until the manager leaves late at night but I don't care. As soon as it hits 5 I'm out of there

[@AnoopKammaran]

Did that affect your appraisals??

[@Dan-Ky-Kong]

Well then you better know how to survive being homeless in Japan

[@inersdraco]

​@@Dan-Ky-Kongthey probably have different attitude to foreigners

[@adriankal]

If you're staying too long in europe they'll cut you off electricity and possibly remove you forcefully from the office. Matter of culture.

[@nugzmedallion8929]

​@@Dan-Ky-Kong Or, ya know, just not go live in Japan.

[@simo.olivieri]

the quality of this video is insanely high for the dimension of this channel, keep up the great work and you'll see huge number coming

[@liviilazii7679]

Brilliant watch and bravo! You clearly took your time to create this. I'm so engaged and i'm loving how informative all the 3D visuals are!

[@Goremize]

I remember this from many years back from a Top Gear episode with Hammond mentioning "You need a special ticket from the train people because if you are even a minute late due to the train your boss will not believe you so you need proof" Its the culture over there. Even being one minute late is seen as a massive mistake that you get blamed for no matter if it was due to outside sources. its been like that for years.

[@SuperKlondike64]

I think it came from samurai culture, where there was the whole "we never surrender" thing.

[@Sammysapphira]

​@@SuperKlondike6499.9% of Japanese citizens were not Samurai. Quit thinking anime is reality.

[@SuperKlondike64]

@@Sammysapphira No, but the idea of Bushido (which originated from the art of samurai) was widespread in Japanese society, even after World War II.

[@FinnishArsonist]

It's really something. I have ADHD, and it's already so damn difficult living with it out here in canada - there are many people who think me being late is not prioritizing them. It's something that has sent me into some dark, dark places - the feeling of trying again and again to do stuff on time, trying everything under the sun to change and yet I just... can't. There are days where it leaves me feeling like I, as a human being, am defective. And that's just the time aspect of it. Trying to imagine what it is like to have ADHD in japan's culture, it breaks my heart.

[@teanbooks9539]

I think their culture is of perfectionism, like “one opportunity, one encounter”- thus “you screw up, you are a failure”.

[@charlotteice5704]

As a German, it's surreal to me how they can get so wound up over a delay of 1 minute and 20 seconds. I would be happy if all the trains that I take had this delay, but usually, they're delayed 5 minutes or more. I have ran through train stations trying to catch my connecting train more times than I can count, only to discover my desired train has already left and I have to take the next one that leaves in 30 minutes. So what? When I'm going somewhere where punctuality is important, I'll take an earlier train, easy as that, life goes on. But for an entire culture to be so uptight about a minute of delay on a train that runs every 10-15 minutes? I honestly don't get it. Here in Germany, I see a lot of people wishing for trains that are as pinctual as Japan's, and I absolutely get that wish, but if that takes employees being abused and there ultimately being such deadly crashes, I'd rather not have it.

[@filipinordabest]

"Some of you may die but that is a sacrifice I am willing to make" is unironically the opinion of a dangerous plurality.

[@LeoMkII]

The problem was not the punctuality but the too tight schedule and the automatic braking system not being up to date in that part of the track. Trains in the whole of Japan move millions of people daily and accidents rarely happen. It's not like you have to kill people to be punctual.

[@ilonachan]

I don't buy that to get punctual trains we need to emulate Japanese work culture. I just think the people in charge of German Rail don't give a crap. It's from one extreme to the other. The middle ground would be schedules that are tight but still leave leeway for humanly expected delays, implementing LIFE-SAVING automation systems (which apparently there are NONE), and of course investing in the network to not be centuries old crap anymore. And punishments shouldn't be the goto solution anyway, unless someone really is a REPEAT offender, but at least SOME kind of acknowledgement of delays and ATTEMPTS to prevent them in the future.

[@AlphineWolf]

You could install Canada’s automatic system? The only time it's manually driven is track issues due to weather or technical issues.

[@Cecilia-ky3uw]

@@filipinordabest It is my opinion as well. Consider the bigger picture, it's one crash. ONE CRASH! And otherwise 120 million people get their unbelievably punctual trains, with basically no uncertainty behind when they'll arrive and leave, allowing for what in anywhere else would be considered fantastical timetabling and scheduling to be considered practical and expected.

[@stoaksawbr2803]

You’re an amazing video producer - I was instantly hooked when I saw the title card with the light shining through the text even while moving/changing

[@theussmirage]

Reminds me of the old History Channel content I grew up with in the 2000s, back when they made actual history content

[@pyplioud]

The quality of this video is absolutely stunning, great work!

[@dallysinghson5569]

Chronic sleep deprivation will destroy the cognitive capabilities, your judgment, demanor, etc., go downhill even if you're young. You become like a drunk and you know how we severely penalise people that fly and drive while drunk.+

[@alexus267]

Exactly. That multiple run-overs earlier were probably a bad sign. Not the easiest time point to take sick leave though, especially when you're young and don't know your limits all that well.

[@jetex1911]

Even tested by the Mythbusters once, you make more mistakes driving sleep deprived than you would drunk.

[@TheGloriousLobsterEmperor]

For all the engineer's mistakes, the blame is predominantly held on the employers who refuse to give their workers time to rest and recover.

[@obiwankenobi4252]

Not even “like” a drunk, IIRC severe sleep depravation has worse effects on your cognitive abilities, alertness, and responsiveness than being drunk

[@FurryWrecker911]

I've been struggling hard to fix mine for years and years. Having third shift friends doesn't help. lol I finally got it under control after falling off the wagon 3 times over the past 2 months. It's nice waking up at 5am without an alarm clock going off. Just, being up and going straight to work. I'm trying not to let my social life screw it up again.

[@DelftTrains]

Japan's culture is really a dark side of the amazing country. Well told Worlds in Motion, you made a great video.

[@botond3]

Indíd, veri trú, áj héjt dzsöpen alzó, betör in hángeri

[@ignotumperignotius630]

Japan's culture is the dark side of the country? Japan's culture just *is * the country.

[@ntray3729]

@@ignotumperignotius630 i guess he meant "work culture"

[@AlexejSvirid]

The problem is Devil runs the world. He is lier and murderer. This is the reason why deception and violence are everywhere. That's why we've got the Gospel about the God's kingdom. Jehovah would put everything in order. The dead will be resurected and we'll meet our beloved ones again! :-)

[@sdfsdfsdfsdfsdf3872]

@@AlexejSvirid bro go to a psychiatrist

[@alexhoughton3305]

This video was impeccably made. Honestly surprised you're not a more popular creator. Subbed.

[@ScarletFever109]

Japan seems to be obsessed with perfection. Nobody’s perfect! Perfection only causes stress along with people asking for too much and giving nothing in return.

[@worawatli8952]

Unrelated to train incident, but the Haneda planes collision on 2nd January 2024 made me wondered if it was another case of overworked crews and unrealistic demand putting on ATC, but the shocking reality was they didn't have any ground collision warning system for such a busy airport, it's so unfair that people put blame on the pilots.

[@dieseldragon6756]

There was a report a few years ago about a JAL pilot being arrested/de-planed at Heathrow airport who was found to be at least four times the UK drink/driving limit for *cars.* 🛫🥃😳 Pilots having a drink _after_ they've finished their roster for the day is perfectly fine...But if a pilot is found to be incapable through drink _immediately prior_ to operating an aircraft governed by that sort of work culture, *serious* questions need to be asked... ⚠

[@alieffauzanrizky7202]

From the reports and data that's publicly available so far that's the plane on the taxi were told to hold short, that mean he need to wait on the end of the taxiway until they were told to go. But maybe there's a miss communication that lead to the plane go into the runway without permission. On this state collision warning can only be seen by the tower since on airplane the collision warning is automatically turned off at a certain altitude. But from multiple recreation of the accident based on reports and eyewitness and the plane on the ground didn't turning on their strobe lights which at this state you're mandated to, it's hard to avoid such accident. But kudos to JAL's crew for safely evacuating everyone onboard, such a stellar job from them.

[@shingshongshamalama]

Incidents are almost never truly the fault of the operators, but a failing of the systems that are supposed to keep those operators from making bad decisions.

[@lsp6032]

​@@shingshongshamalamathis reminded me of several high profile runway incursions in the states, maybe NTSB is also thinking of organisational problems leading to such incidents

[@hingle_mccringleberry]

@@shingshongshamalamaincidents such as this one are OFTEN the fault of the operator. Systemic issues can also often be contributing factors, but ultimately the safe operation is up to the individual operator’s decision making.

[@mogumogu4640]

My friend who went to japan for study said, "When i treveled in korea(s.korea is very near country from japan), i feel like i come back home. because the roads are clean but not so clean like my hometown. " Meanwhile, he littlebit scared when he walked down the road in japan because the road was TOO CLEAN. yes. 'the perfection by rule' is the biggest characteristic of japan and its also biggest disadvantage of japan. They're crazy about the rules, and when someone tries to break the rules, they start killing him

[@sebastiannielson1952]

@@Freezorgium chill out man

[@veongpeong6808]

Make no mistake, korean work culture is pretty much the same, maybe even worse for women.

[@user-pf9rf3sr1q]

@@Freezorgium TOSHINOU KYOUKO!

[@nilmerg]

people always talk about how pristine the roads in japan are, but that has to be outside of tokyo... tokyo's leaps & bounds cleaner than a city like LA, but i distinctly remember thinking how it wasn't as clean as people online make it out to be, especially akihabara.

[@Noducks4life]

Momugum they gonna start killing ppl? 😂 what are you yapping about,

[@clxudzYT]

How in the world do you have so little subscribers. You should have at least 1mio. or more, because you really deserve it. It really surprised me, when, after watching the video, I went to check how many subs you have, and saw you're at only 30k. Sometimes, I wish I could manually influence the Algorithm to get people to see certain videos. I really hope this works out for you - please never stop creating such amazing videos! Greetings from Switzerland!:)

[@Elizabeth-eh8fu]

As a graphic designer the editing was just cherry on top of the cake! Definitely subscribed

[@batman51]

Yesterday in the UK a report was issued on a cover up of health issues resulting in 3000 deaths and my expressed view was that this repeated failure of officials and others in various situations, health, transport, sport, social care etc. came from the litigious blame culture which we imported from America in the 70s and 80s. It is remarkable that at 11:50 above, the report very much concludes the same thing - don't admit anything because you will be blamed, prosecuted, lose your job etc, just cover it up and move on.

[@dieseldragon6756]

As a UK citizen with Autism who's repeatedly refused even the most basic accommodations and rehabilitation into employment - I reasonably believe for a view that my non-chosen sexual orientation and organic identity of faith are somehow „wrong“ - I can reasonably attest that human rights are only a thing for UK citizens if they have both money *and* parental acceptance. 🛂

[@Shinyarc]

And who led this blame culture other than cons like Reagan and Thatcher

[@nonamepasserbya6658]

@@Shinyarc 70's America and it's influence has been disastrous for Japanese society and now we get to see the consequences

[@NorthWoodPen4]

As a Japanese train nerd, I'm really surprised to see how accutate you've made, including details of train itself!

[@JoshwaRoy]

i really dont think that that was what this video was aiming to show you.

[@hyperx72]

​@@JoshwaRoy And why not?

[@newyorkertx7024]

Oh yeah? Name every Japanese train model

[@wiandryadiwasistio2062]

撮り鉄見つけたwww

[@wiandryadiwasistio2062]

@@newyorkertx7024_is typing…_

[@Turtally]

Props to the creator of the vid. The animation, sound design and editing is impeccable

[@Clouded.Cozmo7]

damn, this is a very, VERY good video. The narrrative was very interesting by itself, but the graphic part added so much greatness to it! Especially the city and the animations, it's just so good

[@Sacto1654]

The crash also exposed the problem that JR West did not install enough automatic train stop (ATS) sensors on the tracks. Had there been an ATS sensor installed on the tracks near that sharp curve, the accident might not have happened.

[@shroomer3867]

No no no no, it's the drivers fault, not the company, we at JR West would never be held responsible for our own actions

[@233kosta]

I can't help but see this (and the DPRB's failures to enforce a train timetable) as a planning issue more than a driver issue. If these timetables had the appropriate slack built into them to allow running at line speed (and no faster!) to catch up, keeping to the timetable wouldn't require risking passenger safety.

[@qjtvaddict]

Slippery slope and too much padding is a problem

[@233kosta]

@@qjtvaddict So find a good balance ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@Zander10102]

Or the driver could just not be a pussy

[@fcfhkmelb]

But Japan still has the best rail safety record in the world. Running at line speed is the normal operation so there is no room for catching up. Some stops do have slack time built into the timetable but in general the train schedule in Japan tend to be very tight because their perception of time is very different from the rest of the world. The on time operation relies heavily on the skill of drivers. They are all extremely skilled train drivers in Japan. They are trained to have an internal speedometer in their brain. They can predict how much brake needed to stop the train within 30cm of the stopping line without releasing the brake during the whole stopping process and at the same time maintaining passenger comfort. During training, speedometer in the cabin is covered and drivers are required to tell the speed of the train. A full bucket of water is also placed in the cabin and the driver will fail the test if the water spills. Their capabilities make western train drivers look untrained.

[@craigpridemore7566]

Yep. If, as he said, a minute late means someone misses their connection (note apology of conductor) that's running on the edge of disaster ALL THE TIME. A crash like this was inevitable.

[@seacecd8666]

First time watching and i cant believe you dont have more subscribers considering the quality of this video, i am very impressed

[@biasedlemon]

I had never heard of this tragic incident before. Thank you for such an informative video, and I hope that each person that passed away, rests in peace. I feel so sorry for everyone affected... 107 lives lost and even more families broken, all for a few seconds..

[@TeraAFK]

It's insane to be held accountable for something that is entirely out of your control. What factors causes delays for trains? It's probably not anything to do with the driver

[@artyomarty391]

very good point

[@il_craparo8937]

It is veeeeeeery rare for it to be the conductor's fault. Most of the times delays are due to safety reasons, other delays, passenger caused delays. People on the tracks, cars stuck between barriers, weather related problems and so on...

[@caramelldansen2204]

Blaming drivers is cheaper than making institutional and infrastructural changes.

[@jcymngo]

He was at fault though

[@TeraAFK]

@@jcymngo how so? did he stop the train for an extra 5mins at the station to have a smoke break?

[@Jacky-zt5ch]

Train driver in other countries: We're running 10 minutes late, well, shit happens what can you do ya know? Train driver in Japan: I'm 30 seconds late, fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck (starts overspeeding in steep curves

[@cyrene03]

really appreciate the hard work you put into the video

[@SienaMW]

Your editing and 3d renders are so cool!

[@Forr0n]

Sad that most times someone needs to die till greed or incompetence is revealed in this case the extreme pressure on the workers. Great video and visualizations.

[@Skasaha_]

Safety regulations are written in blood. It's something I learned very quickly in my industry.

[@MolkoKillStyle]

@@Skasaha_ Yup, even outside of work, a redlight might have been added because someone died at that intersection..

[@Draven84]

@@Skasaha_ what a spot-on comment. I will reference that many times in the future.

[@ITBEurgava]

100+ of someones, in this case.

[@VisionsOfSpy]

@@Skasaha_ Only difference is we've had these regulations globally for decades.

[@k.vn.k]

Meanwhile in Australia, life is priority. Delay is common and train will not hesitate to cancel if there is a slight chance of accident to happen. Much to the annoyance and upsetting passengers. Oh well.

[@Hybris51129]

And yet here we are jeering and complaining about a nation that demands competence and reliability and even labeling it "toxic". It's one of those "Go look at yourself in the mirror and ask who is the real monster here" moments.

[@jtho8937]

Surely there must be some way of splitting the balance?

[@legitscoper3259]

Same here in Germany

[@nyb2.027]

@@jtho8937Switzerland seems to have found that balance. Their work culture is way more relaxed than Japan’s, yet they still have some of the best punctuality rates in the world.

[@dieseldragon6756]

@@nyb2.027 What's Switzerlands policy like when it comes to equality and employment for disabled persons, specifically those with Autism? There's a country where such persons - Despite having *no* offences on record - Are entirely unwelcome, and your comment just made me realise why I seem to have a natural gravitation toward both German _and_ French... 🤯

[@Flat_Mountain]

Wow great presentation! Well-researched and well made graphics.

[@sandraleyva1488]

It is better one minute late than one minute of silence.

[@vojtakousal1560]

I thougth that I was wacthing some big chanel with at least 500k subs bucause of the amazing animation and high quality writing but you just have almost 30k subs and I don´t understand how such an amazing chanel get so unnoticed. I hope that you get the popularity and recognition you deserve and keep up that amazing work.

[@Loogie_727]

Only after this comment did I first realize that I'm not. The quality is just INSANE

[@nunya1120]

True, this feels like a company made it, like I'm watching a news special or something.

[@maas1208]

U.S Trains: Delays ranging from 30 minute to 2 hours on top of poorly mantained track that the Class 1 freight railroads don't even bother fixing.

[@Advocatz]

Amazing visuals, one of the best documentary videos I've ever watched!

[@fruitymario3742]

Some say the derailment caused a whole FIVE minute delay as they had to replace the guy by making someone else work overtime. The new guy got in trouble for the delay.

[@RedFoxSkull]

I’m having trouble telling if you’re joking or not, especially since the incident that actually happened is already so unbelievable 💀

[@fruitymario3742]

@@RedFoxSkull It was just a joke. I don't know what happened afterwards.

[@eleanorgreywolfe5142]

If there is one thing ive learned, is that history is doomed to repeat itself because we never learn a lesson for long.

[@Eliastion]

"The only thing we can really learn from history is that we never learn anything from history."

[@caramelldansen2204]

The masses make history. If the labouring masses don't act, nothing will change.

[@antontsau]

well known problem in aviation, truck driving, construction, electrical works... everywhere. Management treats workers as lazy stupid monkeys, writes tons of Strict Instructions to obey and heavy punishes for any divertions... surprise - instead of humans workers indeed turn to monkeys, completely stop to think and pay any attention to reality, only to these instructions and directions. At this moment reality strikes back - if no one thinking who can react to changed condition? Instruction? Its only paper, it can not. Worker? He is busy with Great Task To Obey. Kaboom, we arrived.

[@Pentium100MHz]

Aviation seems to have this a bit better, with, as far as I know, pilots not being punished for honest mistakes and for deciding to abort the landing, go around and try again. Otherwise, yeah, if you needed to prove that you really needed to do a circle around the airport, many more pilots would just try their luck and fail. If the train schedule is such that there is no tolerance even for a few seconds of delay, then sooner or later you will have problems. By this I mean the calculated speed of the train for the schedule was probably 1km/h below the speed limit, so there is no legal way to just go faster and arrive at the next station on time, the driver in this video still tried to do that and killed 107 people in the process.

[@antontsau]

@@Pentium100MHz for refuse landing and fly to alternate, for delays, for excessive fuel reserves, for many things. Companies do not like Excessive Losses! And, yes, all this sometimes ends with crash. Train schedules on busy lines does not allow delays even for 30 sec, or the whole system risk to collapse. In Munich central tunnel trains run by "takt" 2 min, if you delayed 1 min on entry (after 30 min trip, from somewhere like airport) you lost, because next train, from different route, is coming already and there are no free slots ahead, its impossible to stretch the schedule. So for 50 years they upkeep this takt. Japan train systems are even more overloaded. So if this guy got 2 min behind and next station is in 10 min (10 km) he had to press out everything from the train to be there ontime, drive 116 instead of 70 with critical speed 106. He just forgot, did not think, about curve, it was thrown out of his mind by thoughts about imminent delay and what it will cause.

[@AlexejSvirid]

The problem is Devil runs the world. He is lier and murderer. This is the reason why liers and murderers feel good while righteous persons are persecuted. That's why we've got the Gospel about the God's kingdom. Jehovah would put everything in order. The dead will be resurected and we'll meet our beloved ones again! :-)

[@Pentium100MHz]

@@antontsau And that's how you get accidents. The train could be delayed by a minute for multiple reasons and now the driver has to violate the speed limit to catch up. He probably remembered about the curve too late and also probably thought that the 70km/h speed limit had a safety factor built in (it's not going to be 70km/h = safe, 71km/h = derailment) and he was right, but he overestimated it, if he had slowed down to 105km/h everyone probably would have been safe. The problem is not so much as not allowing delays according to the schedule, the problem is creating the schedule on the limit of what is physically possible (or at least legal and safe), resulting in people violating safety rules in case of a small delay. Just because the speed limit on the highway is 130km/h it does not mean that it will take an hour to go to my destination 130km away.

[@jamesclarke8564]

@@antontsau not really on the particular line he was driving on, it was not a mainline, so the schedules shouldn't be so tight.

[@jeffreyyuan8336]

Production quality is absolutely insane!

[@issaczheng5067]

incredible and chilling delivery on this topic

[@juozasuwu4537]

JR - "arrive on time, or die"

[@valcrist7428]

Driver: Yes! (Cranks the speed to maximum)

[@denzelpardillo1181]

Train Pilot: *Nervous sweating intensifies!!!*

[@dutchrookie7556]

No one talking about how neat the editing is? Good film, thank you.

[@monstercraft_89]

I thought it was a train from minecraft

[@tt-zg4tq]

​@@monstercraft_89そういうデザインの電車なんだよ笑 モデルは正確だよ。

[@johnythefox100]

Buddy, can you even read? like alf the comments ae praising the editing, lol.

[@jonathanquesada5275]

The production value on this video is really good 👍

[@MrKnowwun]

My father was a train driver. he was told by his manager "you have a book load of excuses for being late, there is no excuse for being early."

[@LinNull]

I can't overstate how satisfying it is to see how you handled the visuals for this video. No stock footage and great effort on the CG work that's serving as a real backbone for it all. Even the little things like blood dripping from the Japan text really do put in emphasis with the narrative. My first experience with your channel and it's been a good one. Great stuff man.

[@fotoline]

Thanks for making this video. I just spent 4 weeks in Japan, taking many different forms of transportation, from old to new. I have a better understanding now of the cultural mindset that expects no less than perfection, yet lives with complacency and inertia in the same space. The status quo drives people to accept difficult working conditions and force themselves to behave in ways no "normal" person should. One may observe sales staff who cannot relax one second in case a customer enters their store, or endless safety announcements on escalators, or mindless jingles and promotional messages playing over and over in stores, or the ritualization of after-work drinking "to gain favour", or no talking on phones allowed on trains. While I rode on one of Japan's newest high speed rail lines, I also used commuter trains that had probably clocked millions of kilometres since their introduction. Here and there, such as on the subway system, accessibility for wheelchairs doesn't exist. First, you must climb a few steps up from the sidewalk to enter the station. Then, you have to take steps down to the ticket concourse. Then it's another flight of stairs, and another, then a corridor to yet another flight of stairs. Good luck figuring out which direction you're going in case you board a train from the wrong platform. Peel back a layer, and you'll find that the shiny architectural newness and spotless unforms are covering up some large oversights in humane treatment and social progress. I also witnessed or received acts of kindness, so I am not saying that people have just given up. Only that the system/way of life can grind people down.

[@doomsdayrabbit4398]

Probably doesn't help that it *still* has an ongoing occupation from the hypercapitalist hellhole that is the United States.

[@diluzo]

Love your editing ♥♥♥

[@edgarlarios4718]

To be timed so in sync that you depend on your trains arriving at the same time so you have no wait time is insane!

[@Bl1tz3n]

German tramdriver here. This is fascinatingly horryfing. I pretty much always have a delay of 1-2 Minutes on some lines, but there never ever is a punishment. Not even after 10+ Minute delays. It's safety first, always. And we have no Train Control System at all (for most trams, not trains) I love our work culture here in Germany and am glad to not be under so high pressure like our Japanese colleagues. I feel for them and wish for things to get better. Thank you for this very interesting video!

[@Freezorgium]

Yeah but in Japan they also have a low rate of train crashes, and yet, it's unthinkable to have a 10 minute delay. A 10 minute delay is unacceptable. Japanese railway still has the best safety record in the world. The so called safety (or sloppy?) operation in the west doesn’t actually bring along safety. Train crashes happen from time to time in the west but they make a big deal of a one off train crash incident in Japan.

[@Bl1tz3n]

@@Freezorgium the first thing I got to learn, even before I got the Job was that safety comes first. 5+ minute delays are anomalys out of our control. Punishing Tram/Train driver for those would definitely lead to accidents or unwanted driver behaviour.

[@Eisspitze]

@@Freezorgium Even then: I was 2 times in Japan. Both times I had a Shinkansen with delay, one time 25 min and another more than 2 hours, so that I had to take another Limided Express.

[@DonKoopa]

@@Eisspitzegiven how you're used to this from your homeland where train drivers sometimes announce that he's driving slow because the train that was supposed to depart from the previous station an hour ago was right in front of him surely you weren't as mad as other people on the train :> Gotta say having seen this video makes me a tiny bit less angry about our public transport situation... gotta stay optimistic for things to improve over the coming years now that Die Bahn realized that all that downsizing for profits might've been a bit of a stupid choice the last few decades. Hell maybe, just maybe we can even relieve the Autobahns from permanent clogging by reducing semi trucks in favor for cargo trains a bit...

[@thesickrobot6924]

​@@Freezorgium ten minutes is unacceptable to you, sure. Annoying for most of us, but this video shows an example of how extreme pressure on workers can have fatal results. You just seem to be aggressively defending Japan.

[@RBMapleLeaf]

It truly was a tragic accident. 107 lives didn’t need to be taken away from this world on that tragic monday morning in April. A few notes: The 207 series don’t solely come in at 7 cars. They actually are in 3 or 4 car formations and are coupled together to make 7 or 8 cars. It should also be noted that in 1999 that JR West tightened that curve from 600 to precisely 304 meters and it was around that same time they overhauled the timetable. The reason for the tightening of the curve according to JR West was to "Provide a better connection into Osaka." The Fukuchiyama/Takarazuka line had one of the most tightest schedules and that only 28 seconds of leeway was allowed in the 15 minute journey between Takarazuka and Amagasaki. At the time before the overhaul of the timetable the leeway was 71 seconds. Another thing that contributed to the accident and I'm sorry I didn't add this when I first wrote this comment. There were questions why the emergency brake was never used. The reason why was because, the use of the emergency brake must be reported to the company. So think of it this way. The driver Ryūjirō Takami knows he is already going to be punished for 2 reportable offences. 1) The SPAD outside of Takarazuka and the 2) The overrun at Itami. He is also hearing the conversation of his train conductor reporting the overrun from Itami to the control room. So he's clearly stressed out and is completely unaware that he is travelling at a dangerous speed as he approaches that curve at a rate of knots This is likely why the driver (Ryūjirō Takami) choose to use the weaker Service brake which is only used for slowing and stopping at stations and that 4 seconds prior to the accident he did apply the brakes. But strangely it wasn't at full strength for reasons unknown. But the use of the service brake over the emergency brake for the reasons mentioned above is to put it simply. He didn't want to get a 3rd reportable offence. That’s really the key points that were missed in this perfect analysis of this tragic accident. To be honest, I was surprised roughly 50% of the people riding in Car 1 survived with injuries. Like that car was obliterated as this video states the entire carriage was crushed in half. Another video that covered this accident albeit on the survivors by Wonder showed the extent of the carriage to some degree and it was honestly a miracle to an extent that anyone could've survived the chaos that was in that carriage. This might be a little irrelevant but those who want to know the train cars and sets involved Car number 1: KuHa 207-17 Car number 2: MoHa 206-31 Car number 3: MoHa 206-17 Car number 4: KuHa 206-129 Car number 5: KuMoHa 207-1033 Car number 6: SaHa 207-1019 Car number 7: KuHa 206-1033 Please note this was taken from Wikipedia and it may not be the most reliable source but it is the only place I've seen that stated the train cars involved To my knowledge from all the images I've seen. Cars KuHa 207-17, MoHa 206-31, MoHa 206-17, KuHa 207-129 belonged to set Z16 Cars KuMoHa 207-1033, SaHa 207-1019 and KuHa 206-1033 belonged to set S18. Unfortunately I do not know what happened to any of the 7 cars or specifically what happened to set Z16 My assumption is that S18 is still in operation today whilst some videos covering this accident have said that cars KuHa 207-17 and MoHa 206-31 the two leading cars of 5418M belonging to set Z16 were scrapped but I do not have evidence to back up this claim. All I know is that it's likely both S18 and Z16 are still in operation today and that Z16 has two cars replacing the consists that was beyond repair and that the other half of the original Z16 were repaired. S18 to my reasonable suspicion is still bearing on the cars involved in the accident as they appear to have minor or no damage

[@muzero2642]

Tightening an already existing curve seems bad. Very costly, slows down the timetable and uses more electricity.

[@h3w45]

Wow this was very well made

[@varunguptapy7176]

Bro your video quality is very great

[@TheKdcool]

Wow thanks for this very high quality production! This channel is quickly getting great! I like the Lemmino and Hoog vibes

[@electro_sykes]

meanwhile in my city, the train arriving 10 minutes late seems to be the norm 🤔😂😂

[@botond3]

Welkám tú Budápészt

[@CakePrincessCelestia]

When you get to your bus stop 5 minutes late and think you need to wait for almost an hour for the next one to show up, only to catch the one you thought you missed 10 minutes later... XD

[@sudokuacrobatics]

The closer you are to a destination, the more late you'll be!

[@dauphongii]

I would honestly take that any day. Here, buses arrive 10 minutes late. Trains? 30 minutes late and that's the best they can do

[@reyanshiscool833]

Very well-made video!

[@iiraingirlii]

New sub because I really love your editing ngl