AKITA -- Akita Shinkansen bullet trains were brought to a standstill on Friday morning along with trains on other lines as heavy snow in the area disrupted rail services.
Workers were reportedly unable to remove snow in time for bullet train services to run in the morning, but snow removal work continued throughout the day and services resumed on Friday afternoon.
A number of buses resumed services on Friday, and major traffic routes within Akita Prefecture were gradually cleared.
Sunshine was seen for short periods in Akita on Friday, giving residents a break from accumulating snow. As of 10 a.m. on Friday, 66 centimeters of snow was reported in the city -- more than twice the average of 31 centimeters for January, but a drop from the record 74 centimeters reported on Thursday.
Little disruption was seen at Akita Airport, where flights to Tokyo's Haneda Airport were full, partly due to the halted bullet-train services.
As the snow has begun to decrease, more Akita residents have been out on the streets in the mornings, and an increasing number of salarymen are driving to work. Transportation services appear to be running smoothly.
"It seems that the major snow has cleared up, and I think today will be all right," said a female worker at a convenience store in the city whose packed lunches failed to arrive in time on Thursday because of the snow. (Mainichi)
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