Typhoon Faxai and the Tokyo commute

A fun, although sweaty and tiring, weekend spent chasing around some part of rural Japan was somewhat tempered by a peppering of Line messages from the partner back home in Chiba later on the Sunday afternoon about the approach of Typhoon Faxai.  Apparently the Tozai Line, my route home, was going to stop running around 21:00.  We were due to be on a Shinkansen that would have us arrive at Tokyo Station at 20:45.  Cutting it a bit fine.

I wish I'd taken a picture of the dusk mountains we saw on our way to our departure station - to the East the sky had become all brooding and moody clouds marking the approach of the typhoon, while to the West the setting sun was casting a glorious golden hue over the countryside greens.  By this point though, I was just worried about what kind of hassle was waiting for us in the capital.

None, as it turns out.  The Tozai Line, that most notorious of Tokyo's (and the capital's surrounds) crowded commuter thoroughfares was remarkably calm and the commute home was a breeze.  It seems like the warnings from rail operators about service suspensions had been heeded and most people were already home.  On a Sunday!

Monday, or any workday, has so far proved to be a different matter.  Tozai Line operators had, many hours ago, announced that a part of their service would be suspended until 10:00 am due to the typhoon.  And no doubt responsible heads of department at responsible companies had told staff not to hurry into work this morning (hence why I'm able to write this at this time).

Still, out of curiosity I headed down to my local station around 9:00 to see what the situation was.  In my civvies, of course.  (I wasn't committing myself to the commute.)  And with a depressing predictability the station, even before the ticket gates, was getting crowded with commuters who, if past experience holds, are just going to waste time sweating, shivering, getting wet / tired / irritated etc as they wait for Biblically crowded trains to arrive in, well, who knows what time.

The sensible thing to do, it seems to me at least, would be to head home, do whatever work you can from there, and then try again in an hour or two ... and arrive at work in a much better state to do just that, work.

Learn it already Japan!