Tokaido Shinkansen Train Crew, Guards to Have Protective Equipment

July 26, 2018

Nagoya- Central Japan Railway Co. or JR Tokai, said Wednesday it will from next month equip bullet trains on the Tokaido Shinkansen Line with protective shields and "sasumata" man catchers for use by crew members and security guards.

The move follows a stabbing rampage on a Tokaido Shinkansen train in June that left one passenger dead and two others injured.

JR Tokai said protective shields as well as knife-proof gloves and vests will be available for crew members and protective shields and sasumatas for security guards on all its trains on the line by the end of the year.

Similar equipment will be provided on Tokaido Shinkansen trains operated by West Japan Railway Co. or JR West.

JR Tokai also said it will add triangular bandages, hemostasis pads and rubber gloves to medical kits on Shinkansen trains within this year.

The number of smoking rooms on a Shinkansen train will be reduced to four from the current six due chiefly to the need to expand space to store a greater amount of medical equipment, the company added. Jiji Press