RECRUIT

Today, we have gathered three people who are in their second year with the company. Are you all still nervous? (laughs) First, let me tell you about myself.
About 50 years ago, when Chuo Expressway had just been completed in my hometown, a disaster caused the road to be closed for a week, and stores ran out of stock. This experience made me realize the huge impact that Expressway have on society, which led me to join the Japan Highway Public Corporation. What were your reasons for joining our company?

I've loved cars since I was a child. When I got my driver's license as a university student and went for a drive with my friends, they told me, "Driving on Expressway is scary." I only had a fun image of Expressway, so I wanted to somehow dispel that negative image, which is what led me to apply to our company.

For those who don't often drive or use Expressway, the idea of "Expressway = scary" may be a common one. Why did you join the company, TM?

Expressway are essential to people's lives in terms of logistics and other aspects, and I had the impression that they were important in supporting this country. I'm also from Nagano, and the Nagano Olympics were held in the year I was born, which coincided with the opening of Joshin-Etsu Expressway and the construction of the huge Ueda Roman Bridge. I used to drive over that bridge with my family when I was little, and that sparked my admiration for road structures, which was also a big reason why I decided to join the company.

Our company's structures are huge! I also think that large road structures like the Ueda Roman Bridge are cool because they represent the culmination of human wisdom.
Please tell us about TK.

There is a Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel near my house, and when I went to see it I was overwhelmed by its sheer size. That was what prompted me to major in civil engineering at university. When I was job hunting, I learned that our company not only builds Expressway, but is also involved in their subsequent maintenance and management, and I was attracted to the idea of working with Expressway throughout its lifespan, so I joined the company.

Certainly, being involved in the life of Expressway is a major feature of our company. Design and construction companies may find it difficult to provide such comprehensive services.

Do you know when Japan's first Expressway was built?

This was during the period of high economic growth, right?

That's right. After the war, as the Japanese economy entered a period of growth and reliance on automobile transport increased, the lagging road construction situation became apparent, and the Japan Highway Public Corporation was established to solve this problem. At that time, Germany had already built its famous Autobahns and cars were running on them, but in Japan, roads were still paved, and there were still roads on which oxcarts could be driven. Japan's first Expressway was built in 1963 (Showa 38), and it has now been over half a century since its construction. Incidentally, when I joined the company, the blueprints were still written in English, a remnant of the time when the company was still receiving loans from the World Bank for Expressway construction.

It's surprising to think that around 60 years ago, many roads were unpaved.

It's hard to imagine for most people, right? After that, along with economic growth, the construction of major Expressway progressed nationwide, and in 2005 (Heisei 17), the Japan Highway Public Corporation was split up and privatized, with NEXCO EAST being established as one of the divisions. Currently, in addition to the construction of new Expressway, we are promoting the efficiency and sophistication of maintenance and renewal in order to safely connect Expressway that are over half a century old and are becoming increasingly dilapidated to the next generation.

Now that Expressway have been developed nationwide, we are moving into an era where we will further evolve and protect and improve Expressway for the future.

That's right. At the same time, it's also very important to utilize technology that is constantly evolving and think about what Expressway should be like in 10 or 20 years' time. Our company has also drawn up a vision for next-generation Expressway and is working towards making them a reality. To do this, we believe that the flexible ideas of young people who will live in the coming era are extremely necessary. Do you have any thoughts about Expressway of the future?

When testing autonomous driving in preparation for its introduction, I think it would be a good idea to use Expressway, which have no traffic lights or pedestrians. By thoroughly testing on Expressway, I think we can apply the results to driving on regular roads as well.

I also think that if we could install a system that automatically controls the speed of cars on Expressway, we could reduce traffic congestion. Smoother travel would improve convenience and lead to reduced CO2 emissions.

By the way, in areas with heavy snowfall such as Niigata and Hokkaido, it would be difficult to recognize lanes due to the snow on the roads, so would autonomous driving be possible?

Until now, it has been said that autonomous driving is difficult during snowfall, but I think that in the future it will be possible if roads and cars cooperate. I think it will be possible if technology like the one TM mentioned earlier, where the road controls the speed of cars, becomes practical.
Another issue is that parking spaces at some service areas and parking areas are congested with trucks and other vehicles. Are there any ideas to solve this problem so that drivers can take a comfortable break?

Logistics hubs and service areas and parking areas just before entering Tokyo seem to be more crowded, so why not compile data to see which service areas and parking areas trucks and buses tend to gather at?

It would be great if we could use this data to create mini parking areas exclusively for trucks and buses! If we could send real-time information about congestion at each parking area to drivers, we might be able to disperse congestion. It might also be a good idea to create a system where the fee doesn't change if you get off Expressway, take a break, and then return.

Our company's mission is to support the future of Expressway as social infrastructure. Going forward, we will utilize cutting-edge technology to further evolve Expressway, pursuing safety and convenience more than ever before. That thought is exciting, isn't it? We would love to work with you to realize the vision of the future of Expressway that we envision today.

Your company has a philosophy of using the power of Expressway to develop local communities and improve people's lives. Local areas are currently facing issues such as population decline and aging, so how do you think your company can contribute to addressing these issues?

My grandparents are farmers in the countryside, but they told me that they had given up their driver's licenses and could no longer travel long distances to sell their vegetables. When I heard that, I thought it would be great if we, as Expressway company, could create a system to collect vegetables from farmers before they are shipped, and sell them at nearby interchanges, etc. That way, not only local people but also people stopping by on their way from various regions could buy them, and farmers would be able to continue growing vegetables as they had done before, with peace of mind and a sense of fulfillment in their work.

I see. This is a perspective and idea that only SK, the father of farming grandparents, could have.
What about you, TK?

I'm thinking about how we can somehow solve the lack of transportation convenience that is unique to rural areas. When you drive on Joban Expressway, you'll see that there are a certain number of people living in the mountains, and although there are route buses that go there, the frequency of the buses is low and it doesn't seem to be very convenient. In the future, I would like our company to work with local governments and other organizations to support people so that they can use local route buses to get from bus stops on regular roads to their next destination via the Expressway.

This is exactly what it means to build a platform for MaaS*. If we add autonomous driving technology to it, the future will likely open up even more.

*MaaS: Mobility as a Service is a system that uses IT to seamlessly connect multiple public transportation options for efficient use.