CHAPER 1. CHANGES IN LEVELS OF USE OF VARIOUS CHAPTER 1. CHANGES IN LEVELS OF USE OF VARIOUS MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION

1. Background of changes in use of transportation

　 　 Japan's economy has been developing continuously even though it experienced a slowdown of growth during the two oil crises which came after a period of very rapid growth. Consequently, the movement of people and goods has also shown a great increase. Increases in personal income have brought improvements in basic transportation facilities, as well as structural changes in industry and the economy, diversification of public interests, and changes in the use patterns of transportation. Here, we review aspects of the changes in the use of transportation facilities.
　 　 Even though transportation activity is slowing somewhat in both passenger and cargo transportation, reflecting the condition of the economy, the basic upward trend of transportation activity is expected to continue, taking into account the fact that the Japanese Government is implementing various measures to spur the economy and that traffic volume growth was nil or even negative for a while but turned upward again following the two oil crises and the recession caused by the strengthening yen.
(1) Changes in use of passenger transportation
(a) Sharp increase in use of motor vehicles in domestic passenger transportation
　 　 Domestic passenger transportation, measured in passenger-kilometers, showed a sharp increase in the period of rapid economic growth, slowed down after the first oil crisis, then increased sharply with the bubble economy in the recent past [Fig. 1].
　 　 In reviewing changes in use of transportation since the late 1960's, it is found that the use of private passenger cars has increased its share of the transportation industry as auto-related industries and infrastructure developed. This share became larger than that of railway transportation in the late 1970's and constitutes the largest share in total use of transportation. Moreover, it continues to grow.
　 　 The railways share of the industry has been decreasing, while the volume of rail transportation also decreased in the late 1970's but has since turned ,upward again. The air transportation share of the industry is relatively small but has been steadily increasing.
(b) Passenger transportation in large cities relies heavily on railway
　 　 According to changes in passenger transportation in large city areas, railways' share has exceeded 50% in Tokyo and Osaka, and they have been playing a major role in passenger transportation [Fig. 2].
　 　 Use of private passenger cars has shown a remarkable increase and the volume of passenger transportation has also been sharply increasing. Use of buses, on the other hand, has been continuously declining, owing to the increasing difficulty of maintaining punctuality of operation because of worsening road congestion. However, some signs of recovery in bus services were observed in FY1991, as shown by the fact that the volume of transportation by regular buses in Tokyo grew that year [Fig. 3].
(c) Passenger transportation in rural areas where private passenger cars hold a large share
　 　 The share of private passenger car use holds a large share, and has been growing at a remarkable rate, while the use of railways and buses continues to decrease. Bus use has shown a particularly sharp decrease [Fig. 4].
　 　 In observing utilization of transportation facilities in local cities classified by size of population, it is found that in core cities with comparably large populations, use of public transportation is greater than in smaller cities since these core cities provide better public transportation facilities such as subways [Fig. 5].
(d) Development of high-speed transportation service in inter-region transportation
　 　 Domestic inter-region passenger transportation is growing yearly based on active inter-region transportation attributed to increased national income and development of transportation facilities. Railway service has a greater share in transportation between the three large metropolitan areas, partly owing to the development of Shinkansen services. On the other hand, motor vehicle transportation has a greater share in transportation between these three large metropolitan areas and other areas or in inter-region transportation between other areas [Fig. 6] .
　 　 As for the usage of transportation means by distance of transport, railway use has a share of more than 70% for distances of 500 km to 700 km. This shows a slight increase over the past 10 years. For distances of 300 km to 500 km, the use of railways and motor vehicles are more or less the same, and for distances of less than 300 km, use of motor vehicle transportation is over 70%. For distances of 750 km to 1,000 km, air transport use slightly exceeds that of railways, and for distances of more than 1,000 km, air transport use is more than 80%. [Fig. 7]
(2) Changes in use of cargo transportation
(a) Truck transport and coastwise shipping own a large share of the domestic cargo transportation industry
　 　 The volume of domestic cargo transportation in tonnage-kilometers grew quickly during the period of high rate economic growth and slowed down after the two oil crises, then grew again during the bubble economy and decreased somewhat in FY1992 owing to the slowdown of the economy [Fig. 8].
　 　 In comparing amounts of use, it is found that truck transport is growing. It exceeded that of coastwise shipping in FY1986, accounting for more than half. In comparing the use of private and commercial truck transportation, commercial truck transport has shown a remarkable increase in recent years, which is attributed to increasing demand for systematic transportation network service and efficient transportation such as "takuhaibin" (the door-to-door delivery service).
　 　 The coastwise shipping has been decreasing since the late 1970's, but it took a considerable share of 45% in FY1992 [Fig. 9].
　 　 Rail use has also been continuously decreasing since the 1950's, but the rate of decrease has slowed as the result of establishment of JR Freight along with the transference of Japan National Railway to private ownership and development of transportation services such as containerization and "piggy-back service" (railway transport of trailers) to meet the demands of consigners since the late 1980's [Fig. 10].
(b) Remarkable increase of inter-region cargo transportation by motor vehicle
　 　 Transportation by motor vehicle and by coastwise shipping take equal shares of service of 300 to 500 km. For distances of less than 300 km, motor vehicles are used more, while coastwise shipping accounts for a larger share of transportation over 750 km [Fig. 11].
(c) Private trucks hold a large share in cargo transportation in local area
　 　 Cargo transportation in local areas is led by services which collect and deliver for individual companies and households that rely largely on truck transport. In particular, use of convenient private trucks has a larger share [Fig. 12].

2. Increased use of motor vehicles and it's background

(1) Advantages of private motor vehicles
　 　 Motor vehicles have such advantages as ready adaptability of use at time as required, door-to-door mobility, and comfort of movement in sitting relaxedly in compartment, which help make it an attractive means of transportation. A questionnaire survey conducted by the Japan Transport Economic Research Center in July, 1993 reveals that the number of respondents who cited "can go anywhere, anytime at will" or "no need to personally carry luggage" as advantages is increasing [Fig. 13]. According to the above-mentioned survey, use of private passenger cars for shopping, amusement and travel/recreation has the largest share in Tokyo, Sendai and Takamatsu [Fig. 14].
　 　 The use of private passenger cars to commute is less than 10% in Tokyo and exceeds 40% in Takamatsu [Fig. 15]. Also, those who use only private passenger cars to commute are very rare in Tokyo and Sendai, and the use of passenger cars to connect with other means of transportation, such as rail or regular buses, known as "park and ride" or "kiss and ride," is most popular in these two cities. Conversely, in Takamatsu the proportion of people who use only private passenger cars to commute has a large share.
(2) Increasing ownership of private passenger cars
(a) Remarkable increase in number of private passenger cars
　 　 The number of cars owned in Japan showed a rapid increase of 8 times between FY1965 and FY1992, reaching more than 64 million by the end of FY1992 [Fig. 16]. In particular, the number of private passenger cars increased by about 18 times over the past 30 years, and the ratio of passenger cars owned per unit of land space is among the highest in the world [Fig. 17].
　 　 Ownership of light four-wheeled cars is also steadily increasing, and at the end of FY1992, one in four private passenger cars was a light four-wheeled car.
(b) Sharp increase in rate of ownership of private passenger cars in rural areas
　 　 The rate of ownership of private passenger cars in rural areas exceeds the rate in urban areas. The average number of passenger cars owned per a household in FY1992 in areas other than the three metropolitan areas was about 1.2 times the rate in the three metropolitan areas [Fig. 18].
(3) Background of the increase in car ownership
(a) Increase in number of licensed drivers
　 　 The number of licensed drivers at the end of 1970 was about 26.45 millions in Japan, and by the end of 1992 this had increased to about 64.17 millions, or about 2.4 times. As a result approximately 70% of the working age population, between 15 and 64 years of age, hold a license [Fig. 19].
(b) Lower relative price of cars
　 　 With increases in personal income, cars have become relatively affordable. Compared to the ratio of the price of cars to personal income 20 years ago, the current ratio is about one half, therefore, it has become easier for people to purchase cars. Also, in metropolitan areas such as the Tokyo area where acquiring a private house is difficult, one of the factors in the expanded ownership of cars is that they provide private space easily [Fig. 20].
(c) Improvement of the basic capabilities and comfort of cars
　 　 Performance of a motor vehicle are improving through improved fuel efficiency, increased engine power, etc., which contribute to better drive ability. Under these circumstances, and together with improvements in various features of cars, consumer demand for cars has grown. It is obvious that production of such functional cars is due to the high level of development of the Japanese motor vehicle industry which has reached the highest level in the world.
(d) Improvements in road conditions
　 　 Provision of a better infrastructure for cars through improvement of road conditions is one of the factors supporting the increase in car ownership.
　 　 The national expressways have continuously expanded nationwide since the 1960's, and at the end of FY1992, their total length reached 5,404 km. Such improvement of road conditions, particularly the construction of national expressways, contributes to shortening driving time for motor vehicles and is considered to be an important factor in the expansion of the medium-and long-distance motor vehicle transport service.
　 　 Rapid development of car-ferry service covering long distances since the late 1960's has also contributed to the increase of motor vehicle transport in medium-and long-distance transportation service.
(e) Changes in physical distribution requirements
　 　 With structural changes in industry and in user's needs for diversification and upgrading of quality, requirements for physical distribution are also changing. As a consequence, truck use is rapidly increasing.
　 　 The role of the "third industry" in the economy has become more important in Japan in recent years and extension of activity in the service or "soft" sector in managerial strategy is progressing. In the manufacturing industry, the manufacture of "lighter, thinner, and smaller" products is increasing, and consequently the unit volume of transportation tends to be smaller and the required frequency of service tends to be higher [Fig. 21].
　 　 Responding to the upgrading and diversification of users' needs, physical distribution services such as "takuhaibin" (door-to-door delivery service), "just-in-time" service (punctual pick up or delivery at a predetermined time) and high frequency transport of small volumes, are developing. "Takuhaibin" (door-to-door delivery service) has shown a particularly remarkable increase since FY1983, and the volume handled by such services is growing rapidly. Various "Takuhaibin" services, such as those for chilled cargo, direct delivery from place of production to consumers, book transport, golf set transport, ski equipment transport and delivery service at appointed time are actively operated.
(4) Maturation of motorized society and changes in public interest
　 　 The average rate of ownership of motor vehicles was 1 car per 12 persons in FY1965 and increased to 1 car per 2 persons in FY1992. Also, the rate of ownership per I household increased from 1 car per 3 households to 1.5 cars per 1 household. Currently, it is estimated that 1 licensed driver owns 1 car. Therefore, the rate of increase of both car ownership and number of licensed drivers has declined.
　 　 These developments in car ownership seem to indicate that the motorized society has fully matured in Japan. The age when owning a car was considered to be an important goal in life has passed, and almost all Japanese have experienced the convenience and also suffered the disadvantages inherent in a motorized society. As a result, the concerns of those who use motor vehicles have changed [Fig. 22].