Railway operators in western Japan stopped the use of coin lockers and trash cans at major train stations in Osaka Prefecture from Monday, in an effort to step up security ahead of the upcoming Group of 20 Summit.

The measures will remain in place until Saturday. West Japan Railway has suspended access to coin-operated lockers and anything left inside them until then.

At the Osaka Station, travelers were apparently confused about how to cope with luggage.

A man from Toyama Prefecture was quoted as saying, "I knew that the summit would be held, but I was surprised to know the locker cannot be used. It is hard to carry the suitcase around, but I have no choice."

The railway operators are urging passengers to cooperate by taking garbage home while station trash cans are unavailable.

Meanwhile, security has also been strengthened at Kansai Airport, which is a major gateway for the Kansai area, the western part of Japan. Some coin lockers ceased to be used from Monday, while trash cans in toilets and other locations were removed.

At Kansai Airport, in addition to the large-scale traffic restrictions on expressways, limousine buses connecting the airport and various parts of Kansai will be closed from Thursday to Sunday.

The company that operates the airport is calling for passengers to reach the airport by train.