Ekiben (a word that combines the Japanese words for station and boxed meal) are sold at stations and on trains throughout Japan. Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic, which affected ridership on railways across Japan, including the shinkansen, severely affected the Ekiben industry as well. Concerned for their business, Ekiben manufacturers began looking for new ways to survive. See the ideas they've come up with, from frozen Ekiben and online sales, to expanding business overseas.

On March 11, 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake struck, causing severe damage to railways along the Pacific coast. Sanriku Railway in Iwate Prefecture resumed partial service just 5 days after the quake. JR East's Kesennuma Line and part of the Ofunato Line were replaced by BRT (Bus Rapid Transit), and the Joban Line (which runs through Yamamoto in Miyagi Prefecture) relocated its stations and tracks as the town moved inland. See the efforts on how Tohoku's rail network has been fully restored.