Japan's crackdown on truck driver overtime raises fears of economic breakdown

Delivery trucks are parked at a parking area along the highway in Chiba, east of Tokyo, Japan April 6, 2023. REUTERS/Issei Kato

TOKYO (Reuters) - Truck driver Yuichi Tomita has been delivering packages all over Japan for two decades, often clocking 40 straight hours on the road. He says the work is tough but a source of pride, and one he's never thought of quitting - until now.

On April 1, 2024, the government will limit truck drivers' annual overtime to 960 hours, among other reforms officials say are meant to improve the job's notoriously gruelling conditions and make it more attractive.