Japan Rail Operator Says Sorry, as Train Leaves 20 Seconds Early

A Tokyo Metro Co. employee works as a subway train leaves a station in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2011. Japan's government may sell a stake in the subway system to help fund reconstruction following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said on Sept. 5.
Photographer: Haruyoshi Yamaguchi/Bloomberg

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By Eric Lam (News)

November 16, 2017 at 10:42 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

They put a high premium on punctuality in Japan.

A politician once had to drop out of an election after he delayed a bullet train by pushing staff to halt it for a campaign stop. This time, though, it’s a rail company that’s apologizing after the 9:44 a.m. train on Tokyo’s Tsukuba Express line left earlier than scheduled on Tuesday -- 20 seconds too early.