Teacher in Chiba Pref. City Dismissed in Disgrace for Cycling While Intoxicated, Caught Riding Bike Home from Izakaya

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:34 JST, October 16, 2025

CHIBA — Chiba Prefecture’s board of education dismissed a male teacher from Funabashi in the prefecture in disgrace on Wednesday for riding a bicycle under the influence of alcohol.

This is the first time the board of education has dismissed a teacher in disgrace for drunken cycling.

The 36-year-old teacher worked at a special needs school. According to an announcement by the board of education, police tested him for alcohol while he was cycling home after drinking at an izakaya Japanese-style pub in Funabashi on June 28. The test detected the alcohol level in his body was above the legal limit. The teacher’s papers were sent to prosecutors on suspicion of violation of the Road Traffic Law. In August, prosecutors dropped the case with a suspended indictment.

Cycling under the influence became subject to penalties when the revised Road Traffic Law took effect in November last year. The prefectural board of education subsequently toughened penalties for cycling while intoxicated to include dismissal in disgrace across the board.