Japan's airports, railway stations and expressways are crowded on Tuesday as people return from their year-end and New Year holidays.

This holiday season saw more travelers as it was the first time in three years that there were no coronavirus restrictions in place.

Airline companies say the number of people returning from holidays will peak on Tuesday, with flights to Osaka or Tokyo almost fully booked throughout the day.

Japan Railway officials says some Tokyo-bound Joetsu Shinkansen trains saw more passengers than capacity for non-reserved seats in the morning. They expect reserved seats of east-bound Tokaido Shinkansen trains will be crowded in the afternoon.

Traffic on some expressways has slowed to a crawl.

The Japan Road Traffic Information Center says traffic on some sections of the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line, the Tomei Expressway and the Meishin Expressway was backed up for 10 to 15 kilometers in the morning.

The center says the Tomei Expressway could see traffic jams extending 55 kilometers in the afternoon, with 30 kilometers expected on the Tohoku and Kan-Etsu expressways.