Japan Top 10

As fall segues into winter, there are two types of weather warnings that will affect drivers.

The first is strong winds. When the cold air from Siberia pushes against the warm air of the Pacific it not only causes snow in northern Japan, the push itself is a traffic danger.

The northerly winds can be felt over large parts of the country and they can be very strong – I got caught in the winds a couple of weekends ago, and they were so strong that they pushed the car sideways. I thought I had a puncture at first, since the car kept pulling to the right. But when I saw the wind pulling the leaves off the trees I realized what was going on.

This is a particular problem when it comes to kei cars. They are lighter than a conventional car, and often taller and more narrow as well. The narrow wheels also do not help. If the car has no load the winter winds can push it sideways, as happened to me. That is something to remember if you plan to rent a car in Japan.

The other problem is fog. It is not very common in lower laying areas, but there can be foggy mornings even around Tokyo. Usually the fog burns away as the day moves on, but while it stays it can be so heavy that it makes it impossible to see cars ahead, and the lights from the headlights get reflected into the fog, turning your surroundings pearly white. It is not beautiful, because you can not see anything, just irritating.

While fog is uncommon on the Kanto plain, it is very common in the surrounding mountains. And much more dangerous, because the fog makes it impossible to see if the road curves, and if there are meeting cars on the road until you are very close.

While the strong winds are usually predictable, the fog is much harder, and there can be local fog banks that makes it impossible to know exactly where it will appear. The peaks may be clear as well as the lowlands, but there may be fog banks on the slopes. The only advice that works is “drive carefully”.