Japanese railways say more than 11 million travelers used high-speed trains during the spring holiday period, rebounding to near pre-pandemic levels.
Japan Railway group companies say some 11 million 1 thousand people traveled on Shinkansen bullet trains and limited express trains from April 28 to last Sunday.
The figure is 32 percent higher than a year earlier.
The Hokkaido Shinkansen saw passenger numbers rise by 1.8 times compared to the holiday period the year before. Similarly, the Akita Shinkansen saw a rise of 1.7 times, the Tohoku Shinkansen 1.48 times, the Yamagata Shinkansen 1.44 times and the Tokaido Shinkansen 1.26 times.
The companies say the spring holidays brought a lifting of the ban on individual travel for the first time since the pandemic, and many travelers took to the trains.
They expressed a readiness to properly respond to a surge in demand for high-speed rail travel, as Japan welcomes more overseas visitors.