2025 Expo Osaka: 100 People Unable to Board Shuttle Bus at West Gate on Day of Record Number of Visitors Marked; Some Wait Until Past Midnight for a Taxi

The Yomiuri Shimbun

11:57 JST, July 5, 2025

OSAKA — The operator of the Osaka-Kansai Expo said Friday that on the evening of June 28, when a record number of visitors came to the event, about 100 people were unable to board the shuttle bus from the venue’s West Gate to JR Sakurajima Station.

Those who were not able to get on the bus left by taxi instead, but it was around 12:10 a.m., two hours after the venue closed for the night, before the last guests were able to leave.

The Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition, the operator of the Expo, is considering measures to prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future.

That day saw a record 184,990 visitors to the Expo venue, partly because there was to be a fireworks display featuring famous Akita Prefecture’s Omagari fireworks that evening. The fireworks show started around 7:50 p.m. and lasted for about five minutes, so many visitors returned home after 8 p.m.