Well, Indian Standard Time (let’s talk about the real one) is well-known to all – everything gets delayed by half an hour at least. And then, you are just left there, waiting and counting as the clock ticks away and seconds disappear, like poof. When it comes to trains, to think of it, we must have lost days waiting and getting stuck at random platforms.
Everyone knows how “but the metro got delayed” is either a ridiculously true or a horribly shoddy excuse in India. Needless to say, no one takes it seriously. Hence, creativity follows every morning when someone gets late for work.
The Shinkansen, for example, has an annual average delay of only 0.9 minutes per train, including those caused by uncontrollable causes.
In Japan, when a train runs late, to help their passengers avoid trouble with those in authority over them, they not only apologize over the tannoy but a staff is placed at each station to distribute a 電車遅延証明書 (densha chien shoumeisho) or train delay certificate and apologize to the passengers for delay.
Imagine this happening in India. If it happens, I will be the first one to jump out of the train thinking it got hijacked. (Very very personal opinion, do not adopt it)
Come technology, and they have made things easier with the internet. It is now easy to get an electronic certificate. *Sigh, Japan! You are stealing hearts here*
Most of the railways companies’ websites are in Japanese, but they are quite easy to use. If needed, the delay certificates uploaded online are usually available for several days.
On second thought, people who often lie about the ‘next metro station’, beware!
Well for us in India, these stories feel nothing short of a fairy tale. How long before we learn!
