Pandemic keeps many Japanese from returning home for the New Year

Japanese airports and railway stations began Saturday to see some lines of passengers heading to their homes or elsewhere for the New Year holidays, but there were fewer people than usual. due to pandemic coronavirus infection.

As the government has decided to cancel its travel subsidy program and has asked people to stay at home as long as possible to prevent further spread of the novel coronavirus, places are reserved for the Christmas period. lower than usual, according to airlines and train operators.

However, many passengers were undergoing security checks at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, with calls reminding passengers to be careful against the virus.

“I haven’t seen many people since the virus began to spread, although it’s still a fraction of what it was in previous years,” said a woman who worked at a souvenir shop in an exit hall.

“We will spend some quiet time in my city,” said Takako Kamata, a resident of Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, who was on her way to visit relatives in Okinawa. “Our children are excited too because they couldn’t go back in the summer.”

The area for domestic flights at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture was filled with virtual passengers, in contrast to its departure lobby for international flights, who stayed to good quiet.

“Looks like I’m spending a quiet New Year’s rest at home and refusing to go out,” said Tsubasa Nakai, who lives in nearby Sakai, before leaving for his hometown of Hokkaido.

Airlines and train operators said there has been a demand for seats compared to the summer, but the number of bookings is abruptly down from a year earlier.

Between Friday and January 3, accommodations for domestic flights dropped 45% from a year earlier, according to air carriers. On December 9, reserved places for shinkansen and high-speed trains from the same day to January 5 were down 61%.

Japan has seen the highest number of virus-related diseases and deaths since November. On Friday, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga called on Japanese people to spend the upcoming holidays “quietly” and avoid large gatherings among family and friends.

The country’s holiday season began a day after daily outbreaks hit a peak of 3,800 for the first time, with the number of deaths also setting a new record at 64.