The company was called Tessei. In 2005, it had 669 employees, more than half of them part-time, with an average age of 53.
Many had drifted in after other careers. Among them were a former professional baseball pitcher, a theater dancer and the former manager of a traditional inn.
In Japan, the job was seen as "3K": kitanai, kitsui and kiken. Dirty, hard and dangerous.
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"My parents do not tell others where their daughter is working," one employee said. They thought a cleaning job would look shameful.
Another worker tried never to meet passengers' eyes, afraid of being asked a question they could not answer.
Meanwhile, accidents were climbing, from 3 in 2001 to 18 in 2005.