April 22, 2009 Chairman Yano's regular press conference

(Moderator)

Then we will start a regular conference.

(Chairman)

Hello everyone.
Today, there are some topics in addition to the business overview. First of all, let me explain them in succession.
Well then, let's start with the business overview for March. Fee income in March was minus 14.6% compared to the same month the year before. The breakdown is -14.3% for high speed and -17.3% for general pay. We believe that this was due to a significant decrease in revenue due to an increase in the discount amount associated with the spread of ETC such as Expressway fee discount and the impact of the recession. General pay is the same reason. The number of vehicles passing was minus 6.2% compared to the same month the year before. Explaining by vehicle type, I would like to tell you at the same rate as the same month of the previous year, but 101.5% for mini vehicles, 96.8% for medium vehicles, 86.4% for medium vehicles, 80.0% for large vehicles, and 74.9% for oversized vehicles. Has become. By the way, the number of vehicles that passed in March was 43.8 million last year, but it was just under 41.3 million in March, which is about 2.6 million. Looking at the breakdown, the number of ordinary cars, medium-sized cars and large cars has decreased by about 2.5 million units. With 1 million ordinary cars, 600,000 medium-sized cars, and 900,000 large-sized cars, these three types are originally places with a lot of traffic, so I think that this is the cause.
I said that it was minus 6.2% as a whole, but high speed is minus 5.8% and general pay is minus 7.8%.
The ETC discount amount was 18.4 billion yen, an increase of 14% compared to the same month last year. Calculated assuming that there is no ETC discount, the fee income is 62.6 billion yen, which is minus 7.8% compared to the same month of the previous year even without the discount. The ETC discount rate is 29.4%.

The construction situation was opened on the 18th between Tokai-Kanjo Expressway Mino Seki JCT and Seki-Hiromi IC. We would like to thank all the locals and the press for their participation. It's only a few days, but the number of traffic per day is about 1,500. There were 2,500 cars on the Sunday following the opening, but it is falling on weekdays.
In addition, there are plans to make four lanes, and this is the content already announced from Nagoya Regional Head Office on the 15th, but Tokai-Hokuriku Expressway Gujo-Hachiman IC to Gifu Yamato IC Then, we will carry out construction to switch lanes to the In-bound line that was newly established on May 26. This is the last section that has four lanes at present, but we are working hard to achieve four lanes even one day, and it is expected to become four lanes before summer vacation. We will inform you of the detailed completion date and time as soon as it is decided.

Next, regarding the usage status of ETC, when comparing April 3 to 9th, and one month ago from March 6th to 12th, the usage rate is 81.4% plus 2.0% in the latest place. I will. Weekdays are 81.6%, and holidays are 80.8%. Actually, this is the first time that it has exceeded 80% on holidays. We have set a goal for the spread of ETC, but the average daily usage rate in March is 79.4%, as shown in this table. Our year-end goal was 76%, so we think we have cleared this.

Regarding the situation of SA, this month, it is 94.9% of the previous year. The cumulative total for the year was 100.2%. The food and drink department was 99.2%, the product sales department was 104.3%, and the GS department was 74.2%. It is two days after the introduction of the new tariff system on the 28th and 29th of March, but comparing this day with the previous year, 107.3% for food and drink, 112.9% for the product sales department, and 82.5% for the GS department. I will. There is also a difference in unit price, so it is difficult to compare in the case of GS in terms of amount, but it is 109.5% in terms of refueling amount.
The above is the situation in March.

Then, for the total of the fiscal year, I have summarized the details now, I think that I can report the definitive value at this next time, but I thought to report the trend, but it is a preliminary value, but I would like to give only an overview , The fee income for fiscal 2008 was 557.7 billion yen, which was minus 7.7% compared to a year ago. The average number of traffic per day is 1.68 million units, down 0.6%. The ETC discount amount was 197.2 billion yen, an increase of 15.6% compared to 170.6 billion yen a year ago. The ETC discount rate is 26.1%.
The average daily usage rate of ETC is 77.6% this year and 72.3% one year ago, so it has increased by more than 5 points.
The total sales of SA is 100.2%, and it seems to settle down just above the level.
Details will be reported again, so I will only give an overview today.

Next, there are about eight topics. First, the bid status and its analysis. This is reported quarterly. The number of successful bids from January to March was 64, with an average successful bid rate of 82.6%. There were 20 public offering type quotation consultation methods, etc. that allowed the contract to exceed the contract price limit. In 2008, the number of successful bids was 242, and the average successful bid rate was 83.8%. It is the explanation of 1 in the table.
Next, as shown in Table 2, we analyze 10 major types of work and show the distribution of successful bid rates. Explaining where the winning bid rate is low, 72.9% of tunnel construction and 77.4% of landscaping construction have a lower winning bid rate than other work types, but this is because the bidder compared with other work types. This is roughly the same trend throughout the year, but we see it as a competitive advantage. Then there is the high successful bid rate, with steel bridge superstructure work being 99.0% and PC bridge superstructure work being 99.6%. For steel bridge superstructure work, we bid through a comprehensive evaluation method to evaluate not only the price but also the technical capabilities. Overall, it means that the winning bidder is the one that is advantageous to us, and as a result, we believe that the winning bid rate has been high. Although it is a PC bridge superstructure, it was unsuccessful in the initial bid, and it was made a successful bid again. There was such a situation. In each case, the number of cases is one each.
Table 3 is a graph showing the occurrence of low bids during the year. In FY2008, the number increased compared to the previous year, but the rate of occurrence was high from January to March, which was 54.7%, so the rate was higher than in FY2007. The incidence rate up to December was 33.7%, and there were 60 cases, which is why there is a tendency to increase.
Table 4 shows the status of occurrence of bidding failure by year, failure and failure of failure. From January to March, the number of incidents was 13 and the malfunction rate was 20.3%. The incidence tends to decrease. We started a public offering type quote consultation method that allows you to make a contract even if you exceed the contract limit price in June of last year, and I think that the measures by adopting it have appeared in the results. By December, there were 29 open-call quotation consultation methods, but from January to March, the number was 20. The details of the year will be announced on our website in June.

Next is the topic about new charge discounts. First, I would like to explain the price reductions such as special section discounts. This is a press release on April 17. By the government's "living measures," four types of price discounts will begin on May 13.
"Special section discount" means 30% discount at times when no time zone discount is applied. Accordingly, the Tokai-Hokuriku Expressway commemorative discount will end on May 12.
The "Tokai-Kanjo Expwy continuous discount and Ken-O Road continuous use discount" is a policy of 150 yen less than usual for all ETC car models that pass between ring roads and specific ICs on other routes. ..
" Ken-O Road whole line use discount" is for all ETC car models that pass through the whole line of Ken-O Road, and the level is set so that it feels the same as other sections. I think that it will lead to the promotion of use. This was announced on the 17th.
Needless to say again, with the contents announced on March 13, the special holiday special discount transfer will start on April 29. There are certain conditions for application, so please check the brochure and website before using. As a special case of transit, the 1,000 yen upper limit is applied by adding up the regional charges of multiple payment units.

Next is the status of implementation of the new charge discount. The discount started by doing it sequentially from March 28th, but we have summarized the situation for 23 days until April 19th. First of all, regarding the traffic volume, comparing the average cross-sectional traffic volume of Expressway as compared to the same period last year, small cars increased about 30% on holidays, about 23% increase on all cars, about all cars on weekdays It was a 4% decrease.
Then, in the traffic congestion situation, when comparing the number of times traffic congestion of 5 km or more occurred compared to the same period last year, it increased by about 35% on holidays and 47 times. On weekdays, it is about a 46% reduction and 34 reductions. The locations of maximum traffic congestion are as described in the materials.
ETC usage rate was 81% on the weekend just before April 18th and 19th. The usage rate is stable and high.
I analyzed the change in average usage distance due to special holiday discounts. As an analysis of how the average distance traveled to and from the Tomei Nagoya IC changes, we cannot tell you what it is like in our jurisdiction, so please understand it as a representative example. One feature is that the average distance used has increased by about 24 km. Plus 40%. Also, the increase in usage over 100 km is remarkable. There is a second graph, but for less than 50 km, it increased only a little, and for less than 100 km it was a little more than that, but plus 11%. A big change has occurred from the point over 100 km, which is a plus 156%, or 2.56 times. If we take 100% now, it means 256%. The horizontal bar graph below shows the share by distance of use: 69% less than 50km, 18% less than 100km, 87% for both, 58% less than 50km, 16% less than 100km, 74% So that's why we're down 13% here. The amount has increased over 100km, from 13% last year to 26% now. In other words, the ratio of running long distances exceeding 100 km is doubling.
Then, I examined Tomei Expressway Nagoya IC and examined the change in the use of traffic by area. The number of passengers in the Kanto Koshinetsu, Hokuriku, and Kinki areas, which are relatively long distances, is increasing significantly. As it is written in the table, the Koshinetsu region is 2.5 times, the Kanto region is 2.0 times, the Hokuriku region is 4.1 times, and the Kinki region is 2.0 times. The multiples at farther places are large, but the number is small, so if you focus on the places with a large number, you can see the characteristics as they are now.
I tried to interview with the manager of the surrounding tourist facilities. I directly visited tourist facilities around Expressway, and when I looked up the answers there, it was the opinion that more customers could come from farther away. To give an example, when it comes to leisure facilities along the Tokai-Hokuriku Expressway line, the opinion is that you might have gone farther than tourist facilities nearby, and Tokai-Kanjo Expressway. When I visited a commercial facility along the line, I heard that there were many customers from afar, especially from the Sea of Japan side. What is the reaction at the leisure facilities in Aichi Prefecture along the Tomei line? "The number of customers from afar has increased. Especially the number of customers from Hokuriku has tripled from last year." The change in the number of visitors is as stated in the material. This is the result of conducting an interview survey on the number of incoming customers at 18 facilities within our company.
On the other hand, we have collected 1,344 sample voices from the customers, which shows a very prominent tendency. First of all, 98% of the people knew about the rate discount from March 28, and I think that this was because of the press. I think it's very much appreciated. Fourth, 19% of the respondents answered "Yes, did you have this discount this time out?" In other words, one in five can be analyzed as triggered use. We now think that it may be a great motivation for us to use more with discounts in the future.
As for the content, when asked about the purpose of this outing, 77% of leisure is, but when asked to customers who are not induced by discount, 74% of leisure is 5 minutes 4 customer trends. One-fifth of the customers who use it as inducement means 85% of leisure activities, so it can be said that it stimulated latent demand for leisure activities such as tourism.
Now, let's analyze the proportion of customers who have been used for induction by region. Customers who visit the rest areas in the Chubu and Hokuriku regions are more likely to visit than those who visit the rest areas near Tokyo. Is much more expensive. Since it is 23% in the Chubu region and 36% in the Hokuriku region, it can be considered that this discount contributed to the promotion of traffic in the rural areas.
The above is the implementation status of the new rate discount. It has not been a month yet, but it is the result of an analysis within the range that we can grasp for the time being.

Next is the congestion forecast and congestion countermeasures for the upcoming Golden Week. I announced about traffic congestion forecast on the 10th. Golden Week is just around the corner, so I'll explain it again briefly here. It is expected to be quite crowded, so we ask all our drivers to make a comfortable travel plan. Although it tends to be a traffic jam, we expect it to occur frequently in 4 days from 2 to 5 days. We predict that long lines of traffic longer than 25 km will occur on each line. Regarding congestion and accident prevention measures at that time, we would like to work on strengthening services beyond the time of Golden Week last year. For example, the number of LED sign cars installed to prevent speed reduction was 1.6 times that of last year. The number of times traffic congestion information is provided and warnings for the end of traffic congestion are increased by a factor of 1.8 using LED sign cars and LED display boards. Then, the number of temporary toilets installed in rest facilities etc. increased from 57 to 226, quadrupling. The number of parking lot organizers at the rest facility was 291 people, 1.2 times the last year's 251 people. Business hours at the rest facility shops are extended per day, but last week's Golden Week was 215 hours, and this year's was 326 hours, a 1.5 times increase.
Then, what do you think about the measures to alleviate traffic congestion? One is the "Tomei Golden Week Congestion Reduction Team Campaign", which was announced on the 10th. The Tomei In-bound line has a lot of traffic congestion at the beginning near the Yamato tunnel, but for those who registered about this and ran at staggered times, a lottery shopping ticket of 5,000 yen The goal is to give the minutes to 1,000 people in 5 days.
Then there are two information services, and the national service of "#8162", which is a speed dial for mobile phones, was launched nationwide, which was announced on April 15. Our company has done it first, but we will do NEXCO East Japan and NEXCO West Japan together, and this will be available at Expressway nationwide from April 24th.
Also, iHighway Central Japan, a road traffic information site using mobile phones, is a new service for us. Actually, it is a service already provided by NEXCO West Japan, and we are planning to use it as well so that we can make it in time for this Golden Week. Details on when to start will be announced later.
Although we are implementing campaigns in cooperation with related organizations such as tourism, we have concluded comprehensive agreements with each prefecture one after another.In our jurisdiction, there are 11 prefectures, but 8 of them have comprehensive agreements. It was concluded. This is an agreement that focuses on things like tourism and disaster management. We will deepen cooperation with tourism associations and travel agencies, and since Tomei is all 40th anniversary this year, we would like to further promote tourism, including events such as 40th anniversary events. Zenkoji Opening Book, handling of event tickets for Yokohama Port Expo Y150, a company event to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Tomei area, which I just mentioned, and support for regional revitalization in cooperation with sightseeing campaigns and events of local governments along the line Nagano Prefecture, Yamanashi I'm going to work with the prefecture.

Next, we are going to release a theme event admission ticket with Times parking lot ticket in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the opening of Yokohama Port, which I just talked about a little bit.
We are planning to apply from the high-speed weather, the Yokohama side 150th anniversary commemorative theme event Bayside ordinary admission ticket, 1 day ticket for one person and parking ticket set, "Times parking lot ticket with 150th anniversary commemorative theme "Event admission ticket" will be jointly planned with a company called Park 24 and will be sold on our website High Speed Weather from April 28th to September 24th.
As for the contents, we plan to sell it at a discount of 200 yen as shown here. There is an adult 3,000 yen, but this is a normal entrance ticket 2,400 yen and a parking ticket called Times Ticket, if you add 800 yen for 2 hours, it will be 3,200 yen, but subtract 200 yen from it and sell it for 3,000 yen I will.
Admission tickets are also sold at SA and PA. On the day of the event, I think that some people will travel a long way by car so that they do not have to buy it from the venue, so I will sell it.

Next time, with a new announcement, ChuoExpwy, a speed valve will be newly added to the vertical line of Dangozaka SA.
This is from May 1st, and there is a well-established restaurant with a goodwill screen at the foot of Mt. Takao in 1995, and we plan to have two types of bento from there. It uses local seasonal ingredients, and Chuo Expressway has not done anything else, so I would like to increase this if I can increase it in other places as well.
The speed valve offers spring, summer, autumn, winter according to the four seasons, but as a result, there are 22 types of spring menu. There are 12 manufacturers, 22 types of menus, and 21 sales areas.

Next, we will report on our environmentally friendly efforts.
Ottoshi, we published the environmental report, and last year we published the CSR report. However, environmental measures are an important pillar of our company, and we are doing various things. I will let you report the topics.
Today is 3 cases.
The first is the conservation and protection of Genji firefly and Moria frog. We are currently constructing Shin-Tomei Expressway, but because we wanted to reduce the impact of the habitat of flora and fauna in the area, we transplanted flora and fauna at six locations. One of them is the one introduced here. A long time ago, a multi-natural waterway was constructed for the purpose of protecting Genji firefly and Moria frog, which lived near the Kakegawa PA located between the Mori Kakegawa IC and Kanaya IC. However, in 1997, we translocated the kawana that feed on fireflies and the egg mass of Moria frogs to a nearby pond.
As a result, in 2002, five years after the transfer, we were able to confirm the spawning of the Moria frog, Genji firefly, flying away. Recently, it was confirmed in May-June 2008. Please see the attached photos.
The second is the start of joint research recruitment for the purpose of reducing environmental impact. We are currently accepting applications for joint research on April 7, and there are two themes, one of which is research on asphalt pavement warming technology. The manufacturing temperature of asphalt mixture is very high, and we are trying to develop the technology to reduce it. The other is research on wood pellet manufacturing technology using plant-generated wood. In fact, when building new roads and maintaining existing roads, trees are cut, pruned, and grass is cut. I am doing a lot of vegetation, such as mowing. From these, wood pellets of stable quality, which are small, are manufactured and used as fuel in SA/PA of Expressway. We have already conducted demonstrations with some SAs and PAs, but we would like to contribute to the prevention of global warming and the reduction of general waste by recycling, rather than increasing internal circulation.
Another example is a sound insulation wall, but here is an example using materials with a low environmental impact. Naturally, the sound insulation plate has a role of absorbing sound, but up until now, glass wool has been used. However, this is difficult to reuse, so I wondered if it could be done with aluminum. This is excellent in recyclability, and I think that there is no problem if you use it by making fine holes. In addition, CO2 emission during aluminum production is smaller than that of glass wool, so we installed a trial of about 100 m near the Nagashima IC. As you can see in the picture. I have done a lot of research before the installation, but the effect is good, so I am considering what to do in the future.
This was the explanation about the environment.

Finally, I would like to report on the 5th Shin-Tomei Expressway Dream Road Roundtable. This was done on April 14th.
This time, we asked the committee members for their opinions on the three themes. It will start in the autumn, but we are going to discuss the verification test plan, the road map of the new freight transportation system, and the examination of rest facilities. It depends on the opinions of the teachers from various angles. Based on these opinions, we would like to create a world-leading Expressway system.
For details, I will explain from Gejima in charge of TL.

 

(Gejima TL)

Please see the 5th Shin-Tomei Expressway Dream Road Social Gathering excerpts. I will explain it here.
Page 1 is a schedule. In fiscal 2007, we will discuss three times, give a basic direction, report on the status of individual preparations in the 4th and 5th meetings, listen to opinions, and consider a schedule to work on this issue through specific services or experiments.
The second page is the positioning of the demonstration experiment, and since it is an overall service introduction process, we will set the short-term and long-term period between 2012, when the entire line is scheduled to open, and 2020, the time when the entire line will open, and provide the services described in the table, but there is a preparation period at the previous stage, but it is positioned that we should conduct a demonstration experiment here.
The third page is the purpose and significance, one is the trial part of trying technical verification, and the second is the aspect of disseminating information that let as many people as possible know about our efforts and accumulate understanding. I would like to work on these two aspects.
Page 4 is the location and outline of the experimental runway. In the western part of Shizuoka Prefecture, there are two locations between Kanaya IC and Hamakita IC. The tunnels and earthwork and bridge sections are 8km and 9km, respectively. The next page outlines this section, but first, the earthworks and bridge sections are seven bridges, the red part, and the section of about 9 km including hamakita IC. The next page is a tunnel continuous section, and it is an 8km section including two tunnels of Kanaya Tunnel and Kakegawa First Tunnel and Kakegawa PA.
The next page is the Experiment Center, so we will build such a building in each section, monitor the experiment status, and there is a toilet model room as shown in the floor plan on the right, but we will actually prepare a toilet here so that we can actually use it, so that we can actually use it, and we will also ask for opinions on the toilets planned at such rest facilities. In the middle, it is written as an exhibition space, but here we would like to set up an experimental center with functions such as the so-called information dissemination part that we would like to introduce our efforts to everyone who visits using various panels and materials.
And, it is the eighth page though it is a concrete schedule. Currently, we are doing pavement work on the site, and we think that cars will be able to pass from about autumn, and we will start from there little by little, and it seems that it will take about the end of the year for electricity and information communication related to pass, so I would like to proceed in the form of a full-fledged experiment start from the beginning of the year. In relation to the explanation later, we are also planning an experiment of platooning cargo vehicles, and we are planning to prepare the vehicle from January to March 2011.
The next page is its use for social contribution measures, etc., so we will hold traffic safety seminars and eco-drive seminars that are here by utilizing the gap between experiments or the time you do not experiment. I think that it is very effective because I use a real field. In addition to the experiments we are planning, if there is a menu that is being considered by various companies and organizations, I would like to use this field, and I would like to adjust these things in the future.
The above contents were reported as a demonstration experiment, which is the first theme.
From the next page, the roadmap for the second theme, the new freight transportation system. There are transportations such as trucks, railways, and ships in the main line part such as Tokyo - Osaka, Tokyo - Nagoya, but I am currently studying a new freight agency called Platoon driving where cargo vehicles run in a row. At the previous meeting, there was an opinion on this matter as a time schedule or a roadmap to be carefully considered, and this time I reported it.
On the next page, I think that there are three major themes, and one is the main line running form. As for where to run in the Expressway, it is whether these platoon vehicles are provided on the right or left side, or whether to have a physical wall, and whether to have a dedicated entrance. Each of them has its own characteristics, so I think it is necessary to comprehensively consider it.
Page 12 is the second theme, and it is about the ideal way of terminals. It is reported that it is necessary to establish a base to switch to such a vehicle, so-called terminals, and it is necessary to establish terminals at bases close to metropolitan areas, and intermediate terminals necessary for driver breaks in the middle part and, in some cases, switching to the surrounding area.
Page 13 is the vehicle itself. Above the document is a connected vehicle with a mechanical connection to the vehicle. It is a vehicle that follows the previous car electronically below, manned only at the beginning, and unmanned, and it is ultimately set as a development goal.
The roadmap was the 14th page that combined these as a whole, and during the demonstration experiment, we will verify where to run on the main line, the safety of the car itself, and the relationship with other vehicles, and based on the results, we will lead to infrastructure development and vehicle development.
As for the terminal, for example, if it starts in the form of a truck terminal that general cargo vehicles can use, and connecting driving etc. come to run at the time of the opening of the whole line, the function will be added, and when the platoon driving, so-called subsequent cars, becomes the final form of unmanned, it is written that 20XX years, but a dedicated lane is provided, I reported that we would like to create a roadmap in the form of adding such functions.
The third theme is a new resting facility, page 15 shows the list of resting facilities currently planned in our jurisdiction, and the red circle shows it. There are 34 counts by top and bottom lines in total. Among them, this time, the earliest of the Shin-Tomei Expressway related, from the Inasa JCT in fiscal 2012 Gotemba We reported the status of consideration on seven SA and PA in JCT.
Page 16 summarizes its development policies and concepts. The basic philosophy is "a customer-oriented resting facility that is suitable for the next generation Expressway, cooperates with the local community, is always fresh and has a heart of hospitality", and Shin-Tomei Expressway the positioning, the role sharing with the current Tomei, the function of the resting facility, the voice of the customer, and various questionnaires about this are taken, and the voice and the trend of consumption are reflected in the word "comfort", but as a concept that various customers can receive comfortable services appropriately, The common part is that the layout ensures safety and plenty of space. In addition, I would like to work on commercial facilities with two concepts in terms of doing this with individuality. An example of that can be found on page 17. Because of the layout, this is a common part, and all seven rest facilities have commercial facilities and toilets as in the middle of this picture. We are thinking that we can go here at about 100m by separating the mass of small cars and large vehicles around this. Since the most important thing is safety, we are basically thinking about a layout that minimizes the number of times pedestrians cross the roadway and the number of times it intersects with the car when going to the facility once. In addition, the bus parking mass means that customers who come to the sightseeing bus etc. can use it directly to the facility. In addition to this, I would like to try to prevent reverse running and make it a space with plenty of room by increasing green because of the green shade parking lot, and to deal with emergencies such as disaster prevention stockpiling warehouses and doctor helicopters.
On the last page, this is the part of the commercial facility, but this is a part of the commercial facility, while responding to the needs of various customers, setting up development concepts and themes as is below for each SA and PA, for example, if it is Numazu SA, it is a very scenic place where you can overlook Suruga Bay, and the theme of "resort mind" is raised because Izu is also close, Based on that idea, I reported that I was thinking about designing the building and laying out the inside.
In this regard, we have earned a reputation for being a very positive initiative in general. Regarding individual contents, we received opinions on whether it is necessary to have a message that shows that part in an easy-to-understand manner, that we should consider freight transportation systems at a higher speed, and that we should emphasize cooperation with the local community and environmental impact for resting facilities. Based on this, I would like to continue to consider this.
That's all.

 

(Chairman)

Thank you for listening to many items for a long time.
It ends the description above.

 

(Moderator)

Then, thank you if you have any questions.

(Reporter)

As for the current freight transportation and platooning, what is the profitability that you are considering for commercialization? Also, I think that it is to create an SPC (special purpose company) and deal with such things. Is SPC managing the terminal, or is there something like the transportation industry being considered? please tell me.

(TL)

As for the question at the beginning, regarding the first profitability, since this new mode of transportation is the first mode for passengers, especially in terms of labor cost, compared to other modes of transportation such as trucks, ships, and rail freight I think that there is a cost advantage, such as floating personnel costs. I think it is necessary to continue to do that.
This is the second SPC, but this is still under consideration. Do you call it a special purpose group that operates terminals and vehicles, or it is assumed that such a place will be carried or operated now? Doing. For example, think of it as a Expressway version of JR Freight.

(Reporter)

I wonder if there is a numerical value, such as how much profitable demand can make a go-ahead, how many numbers can be expected.

(TL)

I know the current numerical value of the use of the main line of Tomei. When I ask the current carrier, I say, "If it's cheaper than it is, you can't use it," so I would like to continue studying that part.

(Reporter)

I'll ask you two points.
The first point is the freight transportation system, but on page 10 of the document, you are supposed to create a dedicated lane, but on the assumption that you will create a dedicated lane, is Shin-Tomei Expressway moving? Is there an option not to make it?
The second point is the traffic situation after the high-speed toll reduction, but on the holidays all cars increased by 23%, but the initial forecast remembers that it will increase by 5 to 15%, so the impression that the traffic volume is much higher than planned On the other hand, on the other hand, I do not have the impression that there is a heavy traffic jam all over Japan, everywhere on a real basis. Please provide a comment that will fill this gap.

(Chairman)

We will answer from the second question. I said the forecast was 5 to 15%, but I think it was a nice miscalculation. In such a difficult economic situation, I am very grateful that all these people have appeared as drivers. Internally, we are arguing that the problem of congestion may be the result of decentralized traffic, because the discount is all day on Saturday and Sunday. I also think that the planned travel plan is being done on the one hand. After all, the biggest mountain is Golden Week, so I would like to overcome that and make a deeper analysis.

(TL)

Although we are dealing with private lanes, there is no concept of private lanes in the construction of Shin-Tomei Expressway now. If we are going to drive a large vehicle, we think that we need such a thing, and we are considering it based on such a premise. When I asked the users of Tomei now that they would like to separate large vehicles from ordinary vehicles, we set up a case based on that.

(Reporter)

In the experiment, are you making progress by creating a dedicated lane?

(TL)

I think that we will use the space of three lanes in the section that is being maintained in advance, temporarily position that part as a dedicated lane, run it, and continue to study.

(Reporter)

In the experiment, you don't make a dedicated lane, but do you think that it is a dedicated lane, and then, based on the results, decide whether to make a dedicated lane or have discussions?

(TL)

That's fine.

(Chairman)

At the final decision stage, I think we have to fully understand what kind of conditions are needed to create a dedicated lane. I also think that it is a demonstration experiment in that sense.

(Reporter)

Basically, it means that platooning in the dedicated lane has started after 6 lanes are in service. Is it possible even with 4 lanes?

(Chairman)

I think that it is good to think that it will be in service for 6 lanes. In that sense, the problem of platooning including a dedicated lane is included in the long-term plan, and it is not that it can be done immediately.

(Reporter)

Are you on the inside of 6 lanes and on the outside of the lane? Do you have any plans to have 8 lanes?

(Chairman)

I don't think of up to 8 lanes.

(Reporter)

I would like to ask you about the financial implications of the reduction in high-speed tolls. I think you have signed an agreement with the Organization to review your income and expenditure forecast. What has changed from the past? Please tell me the points.

(Chairman)

The final figures will be finalized from now on, but the idea is how to reflect the part being conducted in social experiments and the part being implemented as a new measure in the final settlement of accounts. As the leasing fee will come out in a form that decreases, as you can see from what I talked about today, for the time being, the number will decrease, but the leasing fee will decrease, so it will be tonton. Very roughly speaking, it has such a mechanism.
Also, considering traffic congestion measures, safety measures, and SA measures, I think that there will be costs that should be borne by the company. This is not included in the national policy, so I think that will be an expense.
I think that you will come up with the answers together, including such things.

(Reporter)

In the forecast of fee income, it is forecast that revenue will decrease from the previous forecast until 2017, and it is assumed that it will return to the original after 2018, but why is it the assumption that it will return at this timing. Suka

(Chairman)

As a practical matter, there are various things such as economic trends, so there is something that cannot be said unequivocally. In the long run, I think prices will decline in this economic climate. Specifically, I intend to make it concrete by reflecting it in the budget of each year. I think it is important to look at the numbers while changing the framework in a timely fashion, rather than using the framework of decreasing or increasing.

(Reporter)

Is there any impact on the profitability of the construction of the new route due to the tax compensation?

(Chairman)

I think it will not change in that it is based on B/C etc. that have been done so far. Rather, B/C is used as an index that can be quantitatively measured, and I think there is a new issue as to whether it is enough. There may be benefits or costs that cannot be expressed in various figures such as landscape. As a company that builds and operates roads, I think it would be great if such discussions would come out in the future.

(Reporter)

The number of units used in the month of March decreased by 6.2%, and the number of units also decreased by 0.6% in FY2008. Income is also reduced by ETC discount. Please tell us about the analysis and evaluation based on the fact that the number of units in the year is decreasing.

(Chairman)

For the fiscal year, we would like to spend some time putting together. As for the 6.2% decrease in the number of passing vehicles, Saturday and Sunday increased, but I think the decrease in trucks and heavy vehicles is pushing down the whole. This tendency has been occurring since last year, but it is becoming stronger and stronger, and I think the problem is how much the fee measures can support. It feels like I am walking with a heavy weight attached to my legs, but fortunately, I think it is supported by the fact that measures are being taken to increase the traffic volume. This is a state in which we can't take our eyes off, and I would like to chase and analyze each month. Every month, I would like to explain it here, and if there are new discoveries, I would like to explain them together.

(Moderator)

If there are no other questions, we will end the 42nd regular press conference.
Thank you very much.