8 March | • | Last car of train on Tokyo's
TRTA Hibiya Line derailed and collided
with other train, killing five and injuring 60
|
11 March | • | JR Group revised train
diagrams with new Hikari RailStar (eightcar
formation) of San'yo Shinkansen
debuting between Shin Osaka and Hakata
with journey cut from 3 hours 17 minutes
to 2 hours 45 minutes
|
15 March | • | Amtrak long-distance train
bound for Los Angeles from Chicago
carrying 155 passengers and crew
derailed near Topeka, Kansas, injuring 29
persons
|
23 March | • | New runway B (2500 m)
opened at Tokyo International Airport
(Haneda)
|
30 March | • | Chinese government
announced decision to commence
construction of Beijing–Shanghai High-
Speed Railway during tenth 5-year plan
(2001–05). Running tests to be held on
high-speed line between Beijing and
Shengyang
|
31 March | • | JR West's Takatori Works in
Suma-ku, Kobe closed as part of Kobe
City's earthquake reconstruction project
after 100 years of operations in
manufacturing, inspecting and repairing
steam locomotives
|
• | Truck hit by six-car train at
crossing in Kawasaki on JR East Nambu
Line, killing truck driver
|
7 April | • | JR West signed sister agreement
with Modern Transportation Museum in
Minato-ku, Osaka, Umekoji Steam
Locomotive Museum in Shimogyo-ku,
Kyoto, and National Railway Museum in
York, UK to deepen mutual exchange and
revitalize museum activities
|
8 April | • | JR East entered Internet
shopping in tie-up with Lawson Inc. (major
convenience store), and Mitsubishi
Corporation by opening ‘Eki-net’ to deliver
products at 179 JR convenience stores in
JR stations in Tokyo Metropolitan Area and
720 Lawson stores nationwide
|
10 April | • | 240 Tokyo buses turned into
‘Wrapping Buses,’ featuring large
advertisements covering most parts of bus
after deregulation
|
15 April | • | Vehicle stalled on crossing of
Tobu Isezaki Line in Hanyu, Saitama
Prefecture, hit by super-express train,
killing girl passenger
|
19 April | • | Air Philippines B737-200 domestic
airliner crashed on landing at Davao Airport
in Mindanao, killing all 131 on board
|
20 April | • | Extension (2.1 km) of Tokyo
Metropolitan Oedo Line opened between
Shinjuku and Kokuritsu-kyogijo. Tennisracket
shaped line to run 40.7 km when
fully opened in December this year
|
• | Car pushed from behind onto
crossing near Philadelphia, and hit by
freight train, killing four people. Other
driver arrested by state police
|
27 April | • | New Tokyo International Airport
Authority (NAA) posted record highs in 1999
due to recovery of Asian economies, etc.
Arrivals and departures increased 4% to
approximately 133,000; number of
passengers increased 5% to 26 million, and
air cargo jumped 14% to 1.83 million tonnes
|
29 April | • | JR Hokkaido Muroran Line
reopened to operations between Toya and
Nagawa 1 month after eruption of Mt Usu
|
3 May | • | 17-year old boy with knife hijacked
Nishitetsu Highway Bus in Fukuoka
Prefecture, killing one passenger and
injuring five others. Police rescued other
passengers after 15-hour standoff
|
5 May | • | Saitama New Urban Center opened
on 47.7-hectare site of former Omiya
marshalling yard. Offices of 10 government
ministries and agencies as well as 18
institutions moved to the Center and JR East
Saitama Shintoshin Station opened
|
10 May | • | Japan's House of Councillors
passed Barrier-Free Law obligating public
transport businesses such as railway
companies, bus companies and airlines to
install elevators, etc., in new facilities for
elderly and disabled people
|
20 May | • | Concrete pedestrian bridge
collapsed in Concord, North Carolina,
injuring more than 90 persons on bridge
|
21 May | • | BA31 Jetstream crashed in NE
Pennsylvania, killing all 19 people onboard
|
23 May | • | White Paper on Traffic Safety
revealed number of Japanese traffic
casualties topped 1 million level for first time
|
24 May | • | JR East held joint seminar with
International Union of Railways (UIC) on
management innovation at new JR East
General Training Centre at Shin Shirakawa
in Fukushima Prefecture
|
• | UAL (parent company of United
Airlines) announced purchase of US
Airways at price of $4.3 billion
|
25 May | • | Armed man parachuted to death
after robbing passengers of domestic flight
over Manila
|
26 May | • | White Paper on Tourism
indicated 3.5% increase in Japanese
overseas travellers in 1999 amounting to
16.36 million people
|
1 June | • | EXPO 2000 Hannover opened,
promoting environmentally compatible
development in 21st century
|
2 June | • | Nagoya City Transportation
Bureau opened Tram & Subway Museum
in north side of Nisshin Factory in Nisshin
City, Aichi Prefecture to conserve street/
subway cars
|
9 June | • | Tokaido Shinkansen awarded
Milestone Award by Institute of Electrical
and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and
Landmark Award by American Society of
Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
|
10 June | • | Mountain trains collided headon
in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in southern
Germany, injuring at least 57 passengers
|
13 June | • | Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp.
in charge of constructing/operating
shinkansen in Taiwan, signed
memorandum with Taiwan Shinkansen
Consortium and Japanese business group
of Mitsui & Co., Ltd., Mitsubishi Heavy
Industries, Ltd., Kawasaki Heavy
Industries, Ltd., and Toshiba Corp., etc.,
confirming adoption of Japanese
shinkansen system
|
14 June | • | Ministry of Transport granted
Sendai International Airport licence to
build 7.1-km category-I railway between
Natori and Airport with connection to JR
Tohoku
|
• | Continental Airlines MD80
undergoing pre-departure check ran into
terminal at Newark International Airport,
slightly injuring one mechanic
|
15 June | • | South Korean government in
joint communiqué with North Korea,
announced agenda including reconnection
of Seoul–Shinwiju Line, now cut at
demilitarized zone
|
• | Teito Rapid Transit Authority
announced construction of large-capacity
optical fibre cable in subway network of
Tokyo city centre to establish wide area
information infrastructure by late 2001
|
• | Italian government decided to
sell remaining 51.2% shares in Aeroporti
di Roma (Rome Airport) with dissolution
of IRI government holding company by end
of June
|
20 June | • | Japan Airlines and Nagoya
Railroad Co. (Meitetsu) announced
dissolution of High Speed Surface
Transport Development Corp. for joint
development of maglev linear motor
vehicle, and transfer of project to Meitetsu
affiliate, Chubu HSST Development Corp.
with HSST to be built in Nagoya suburbs
for EXPO 2005 Aichi
|
• | Nishi-Nippon Railroad Co. Ltd.
granted permission to close 86-year old
Kita Kyushu Line on 25 November.
However, Kurosakiekimae–Kumanishi
(0.6 km) section to be leased to Chikuho
Denki Tetsudo as category-III railway
|
• | Ministry of Transport granted
permission to The Fair Inc. to start three
daily return jet services between Sendai
Inter national Air por t and Kansai
International Airport
|
• | Three front cars of eight-car
New York subway train derailed at Dekalb
Ave. Station, Brooklyn, injuring 89
passengers
|
22 June | • | Air France, Delta Airlines,
Aeromexico and Korean Airlines
announced SkyTeam alliance
|
• | Domestic passenger plane of
Wuhan Airline struck by lightning and
crashed in suburb of Wuhan, China, killing
all 42 passengers and crew
|
23 June | • | Airbus Industrie announced
decision to manufacture ultra-large
capacity A3XX from late 2005. Company
to be fully privatized from January 2001
and renamed Airbus Integrated Company
(AIC)
|