Video Visualizes Tokyo's Human Traffic After March 11 Earthquake

So, you weren't here for the big one on March 11 2011. The earthquake, one of the largest ever recorded, shut down practically all public transportation for nearly a full day and stranded millions in Central Tokyo. The video below, using cellular phone GPS data, perfectly visualizes the earthquake’s impact. The video begins at 4 a.m. March 11. 0:15 – about 6 a.m. Early starters begin to head into the city 0:23 – 8:10 a.m. The morning rush. 0:31 – A handful of people appear to swim across Tokyo Bay to commute to work. 0:46 – 2:46. Earthquake tremors hit Tokyo. 0:47 – Everything slows to a dead crawl. 1:17 – 11 p.m. Traffic finally begins to pick up again over 8 hours after the first tremors strike. Nearly all traffic is leaving the city. 1:45 – 7 a.m. March 12. Traffic resumes at a more or less normal pace, proving that even after epic natural disasters, the Japanese will still find some way to go to the office.