Suicide in Japan: Part Seven - Anti-Suicide Measures at Railway Stations

J. Sean Curtin (Fellow, GLOCOM)

A full list of articles in this series can be found here.

In recent years, train operators have invested in a variety of measures and schemes designed to curb the number of deaths at train and subway stations. This policy has been driven by (i) a sharp rise in the suicide rate, (ii) a desire to make stations safer for ordinary passenger and (iii) the need to reduce the massive disruption and cost caused to the transportation system each time there is a suicide, an attempted suicide or an accident.

The financial cost to train companies of just one suicide can be astronomical. For example, in January 1999, a businessman jumped in front of a train at JR Harajuku Station. He was seriously injured, but survived the experience. His suicide attempt halted 26 JR Yamanote Line trains, delayed 54 others and caused the temporary suspension of operations on the entire Yamanote and Saikyo lines. It was estimated that this one single suicide attempt disrupted the journeys of about 160,000 commuters.

As the new millennium dawned, the suicide rate continued to climb. Consequently, both the government and train operators concluded that it was in everyone's best interest, especially those who wished to take their own life, if stations were made as safe and suicide-proof as possible.

Before detailing specific anti-suicide measures, it is important to reiterate that not all deaths at stations are due to suicide. Every year, beside cases of self-harm, there are a number of genuine accidents. According to government figures which exclude suicides, in 2000 the number of fatal or serious accidents caused by unintentionally falling onto the tracks or being hit by a train while on the edge of the platform totaled 142. After the introduction of various safety improvements, the non-suicide figure fell to 100 in 2001.

Visible anti-suicide measures at stations have included giving platforms a brighter atmosphere and installing more lights at the ends of platforms. According to psychologists such measures have a deterrent effect on those contemplating suicide.

Quite a large number of stations have also installed alarm devices on platforms that alert drivers when a person has fallen onto the tracks. This measure is aimed at both increasing safety and reducing suicide. To assist those who have accidentally fallen on to the tracks, in recent years most stations have created crawl spaces under platforms and have built footholds from the tracks to the platforms.

Besides the structural alterations, railway operators have also initiated a number of specific suicide prevention schemes. These have included such things as sponsoring suicide help-lines and counselling services. This policy demonstrates that rail companies are trying to tackle the issue on a number of fronts.

However, the sharp increase in the suicide rate was not the only factor driving the introduction of improved safety measures at stations. Prominent accidents also played a role, especially one that occurred in early 2001.

On 26 January 2001, a man unwittingly fell off the platform of Shin-Okubo Station. Two male passengers jump down on to the tracks to help him, but all three were killed by an oncoming train. It was this incident combined with an increase in suicides that spurred the government into action. In 2001, the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry ordered railway operators in charge of the 2,077 designated train stations to carry out structural changes to make platforms safer.

Today's platforms are the safest they have ever been and the anti-suicide measures have without doubt discouraged some suicidal people. Regrettably, the overall suicide rate as continued its relentless upward trend, illustrating the need for broader social policies to tackle the deeper and underlying causes of suicide.

A full list of articles in this series can be found here.