December 18, 2008 Chairman Yano's regular press conference

(Moderator)

Then we will start a regular conference.

(Chairman)

Hello everyone.
At the end of the year, thank you all for this year.
There are some topics today, so I will explain them in order.

Well then, let's start with the business overview for November.
Toll revenue in November was 9.1% of the same month last year. The breakdown is 9.9% for high speed and 0.2% for general pay. Expressway has a new menu added from October 14th in "Urgent comprehensive measures for realization of peace of mind" in Expressway due to price reduction, there are also social experiments before that, but The impact of this and the increase in discounts due to the spread of ETC resulted in a decline in revenue. As will be explained later with regard to general tolls, although traffic volume has increased slightly, sales have declined due to an increase in discounts due to the spread of ETC.
The number of passing vehicles was 0.4% compared to the same month last year. The breakdown is high speed minus 1.3%, general pay plus 3.1%.
The ETC discount amount has increased considerably, and the 23.0% discount amount has increased compared to the same month last year. If there was no ETC, the fee income would be 64.8 billion yen, a decrease of 1.9% from the same month of the previous year. The ETC discount rate was 28.2%, and the previous month was 27.7%, so this discount rate is increasing every month. We are putting pressure on our management, but we are working hard to manage such a system that has existed from the beginning at our own expense.
In addition, I always have questions, so I would like to talk about each vehicle type in advance. In terms of the number of vehicles, mini-vehicles account for 107.0%, and mini-vehicles have been increasing to this extent over the past few months. Regular cars are almost flat at 99.8%, medium-sized cars at 90.9%, large-sized cars at 93.2%, oversized cars at 92.6%, and overall at 98.7%. This is a little different from the change in the number of passengers we talked about, but I think you can see this as a trend.

The construction situation has not changed from last month, but I will only show you one. Higashi-Meihan Expwy Yokkaichi From JCT Yokkaichi The additional lane that we have been working to reduce traffic congestion near the IC is completed and will be available tomorrow from December 19th . I will explain this in the first topic.

Next is the use situation of ETC. Comparing the latest December 5th to 17th and last month's November 7th to 13th, the average daily utilization rate is + 0.5%, which is 78.5%. By dividing weekdays and holidays, weekdays are 79.4% to 80.0%, plus 0.6, and holidays are 74.1% to 74.6%, plus 0.5. Both weekdays and holidays are increasing. On a daily basis, the usage rate exceeded 80% for the first time in our entire area on December 2. Also, during the week from December 5th to 11th, as shown in the table, the average usage rate on weekdays exceeded 80% for the first time. The cumulative number of on-board units installed is 21.85 million.

It is the situation of SA, but it is 100.4% compared with the previous year. The breakdown is relatively good in the food and drink and food sales departments, with the food and drink department accounting for 107.6% and the product sales department for 113.2%, and the two combined together have a year-on-year increase of 11.1%. The service sector was flat at 100.0%, and the gasoline sector was not able to recover easily, falling to 71.1%, a little less than 30%. The advertising department has been steadily increasing recently, but the amount is 69.2% although the amount is small.
The above is the current status of the business.

Next, there are 6 topics in all, so I will explain them in order.
First, Higashi-Meihan Expwy Yokkaichi From JCT, the additional lane near Yokkaichi IC is completed. This will be announced today at 15 o'clock in the name of Nagoya Regional Head Office, and my guide is one hour ago, but since everyone is gathering, I will explain it.
As for the construction that we have done to counter traffic congestion, the Out-bound line was completed on November 19, but the In-bound line will be released tomorrow on 19th tomorrow so that you can use it. Will be. We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the construction regulations for a long time. Thank you for your cooperation.
As shown in the document, this additional lane business is an additional lane with a continuous extension of about 5km, by connecting an additional lane near Gozaisho SA from Yokkaichi JCT. Yokkaichi JCT, Yokkaichi Higashi IC, It was planned to secure safe and smooth traffic at the merging and merging part of Gozaisho SA.
Yokkaichi Regarding IC, we have extended the branching and merging channels to allow smooth merging and merging. By installing this additional lane, it is expected that the traffic congestion will be alleviated against the congestion caused by the increase in traffic due to the opening of Shin-Meishin Expressway.
Soon, we will be in the busy season of the year-end and New Year holidays, but I would like to ask our customers to have time to drive safely.

The second topic is the continuation of the Tokai-Hokuriku Expwy full line commemorative discount, which will be announced for the first time today.
As you can see, many customers have been using the Hida Kiyomi IC and the Shirakawago IC on the newly opened section, and since July we have been running a Tokai-Hokuriku Expressway opening commemorative discount. It has been well received, and the traffic volume has continued to stably exceed the forecast. Also, given that the country's life measures are being planned, we decided to continue to carry out this same discount until March 31, next year. However, as I wrote here, if a Expressway toll reduction is implemented based on lifestyle measures, we would like to end the discount in line with the implementation.

The third topic is the ETC lane speed control measures. On November 25th, we took steps to control the speed of ETC lanes over the entire area of our company. It's been less than a month, but both traffic accidents and speed conditions are good when compared before the measures.
We worked hard to promote PR, and we have come to ask for your cooperation so that it will not bother you by taking new measures as much as possible. Thank you so much for doing this. So far, I would like to thank all of you for your cooperation in achieving the initial goals.
It is a toll booth, but we proceeded sequentially, and it was completed yesterday. There are 226 toll booths and 616 ETC lanes.
Regarding the occurrence of traffic accidents, there are various things such as traffic accidents on ETC lanes, contact accidents and rear-end collisions, but the number is 12 in 17 days from November 25 to December 11, with an average of 0.71 daily. In fiscal 2007, this was a little long, but there were 523 cases, 1.43 cases a day, so the period for taking new measures is short, but it has decreased to half. In addition, we examined the contents of these 12 accidents, but by changing the opening and closing speed, no accidents caused by it occurred.
Then, regarding the situation of speed change, when comparing these 17 days with December of last year, obviously a reduction effect of about 4 km in average speed is seen, and the ratio of remarkable overspeed vehicles is about 40 on average. % Has been reduced. And there is no traffic congestion caused by this measure.
Please see the graph on the back page for what I just mentioned.

The fourth topic is Expressway traffic jam prediction and Tomei traffic jam reduction team at the end of the year and New Year. This has already been announced on December 5, but it will be the year-end and New Year holidays soon, so I will explain it again.
There is a prediction that Tomei Expressway 's In-bound line will be crowded from January 2nd to 4th, so we are going to carry out this campaign, but we have registered in advance as here. If you use it before the expected congestion time, you will be given lots of mileage points and information will be provided.
In-bound I wondered if the 2nd to 4th day in the direction of the traffic jam would occur most, and basically I think that the traffic jam situation is the same as usual.
Today, we are handing out traffic jam forecast guides and campaign leaflets, so please take a look.

Next, regarding the fifth topic, I would like to report on the holding of a study meeting on long-term maintenance plans for Expressway networks.
This was held on December 9th, and we all know the importance of building new roads, but at the same time, we think it is necessary to make efforts to make the existing roads and existing roads last longer. We are talking about "100-year roads" and are considering it, but we think that it is not enough to study only ourselves, and we are asking for outside experts to come together.
Mr. Minemura, the manager of the department, will explain about the study meeting.

 

Minemura Director

Based on the materials at hand, I would like to report the outline of the so-called "100 Years Road Study Group" held on the 9th.
If you turn over one sheet, there is a list of committee members on the back. I also have a title, so I would like you to see it.
Next, please refer to the one with Document 1 on the right shoulder. This is the material of the study meeting itself. I would like to report on this.
Please see the map on the left of the page below Document 1. The orange line is the line that has been open for over 40 years. Tomei, Meishin, or Chuo Expressway Fuji-Yoshida line. Yellow-green is Hokuriku Expressway, Chuo Expressway, these are over 30 years. We are in charge of such routes, the first road constructed in Japan. It means that we have nearly 60% of such routes.
Next, the main purpose of this study meeting is to understand the current situation and issues of the aged Expressway stock, and to understand how the social environment is changing, and to manage properly. Is to consider what a long-term maintenance plan should be, considering what it is and how to optimize repair costs.
And below is the schedule. The first meeting was held on December 9th. This mainly focuses on understanding the current situation. And the second part will add some simulation. In the second March, we plan to consider how money works and what kind of allowance and how much it will cost. And the third time. In June, I would like to think about what a long-term maintenance plan should be.
Then, Document 2 is a document compiled from the viewpoint of grasping the current situation. First of all, there is the current status of the bridge. There is a graph on the right side of page 6, this graph shows the age of the bridge on the horizontal axis, the number of damage points on the vertical axis, 1 m ² It is a graph showing how many parts are broken around. It's natural for the curve to rise, but you can see that the curve has become a little steeper, especially after 25 to 30 years. I said earlier that I have a lot of routes that have been over 30 years or over 40 years, because I have a problem awareness in such places.
The pages 7-8 behind it are actually broken photos. From the upper left, salt damage of concrete bridge, neutralization, alkali silica reaction, cracking of steel bridge, fatigue deterioration. Then there is also corrosion.
Also, especially in the snow and ice area below, the sprinkling of salt has damaged the concrete on the road surface above the bridge.
Next is the current state of pavement. Although it is on page 12, there are cracks and cracks like this, but when I dig this, as shown on page 14 on the right side, not only the road surface above, but the inside is also cracking is. In addition, there are tunnels on page 17 and equipment-related damage on page 18.
Next is the change in social environment, page 21. The traffic volume is on the left side, it is growing naturally, and it has been flat recently. However, the cross-sectional traffic of large vehicles, which means that Tomei and Meishin are 8 to 9 times as heavy as ordinary national highways, is said to bear twice as much traffic as metropolitan highways and city highways such as the Hanshin Expressway. I am. Below that, the general vehicle limit has been increased from 20t to 25t. Also, as shown in the graph on the right, the overloaded vehicle, which is a violating vehicle, is 50t in this situation.
Then, it is page 29 about the problem that the current maintenance has. I am doing intensive work, but this is done to reduce construction congestion, but since the amount of work that can be done in 2 weeks is very limited, sufficient repair cannot be done, page 30 In terms of cost, as you can see, you can see that the service extension has been increasing since the cost reduction plan of 1997, but the repair cost is declining.
We presented such materials and had discussions with them, but the committee members mainly provided four opinions. Although this is not in the materials, the first point is that the fee collection period will end in 42 years, but after that, the point that we will discuss on the premise that it will maintain soundness more than now even after free release This is the first point. The second point is that it is also a good idea to break up from the conventional coping therapy repair. It's not the coping therapy, but the root cause of the problem. Thirdly, for that purpose, let's discuss an ideal maintenance management model.I would like to discuss the ideal maintenance management model by collecting data for each work type such as earthwork, bridge, tunnel, pavement. . The fourth point is the discussion about what happens if the structure is left unattended, and the risk that it will be shared and whether it is important to share that information with society.
Based on these four points, I would like to proceed with the work and prepare for the next review meeting in March.
that's all.

 

(Chairman)

If you have any questions, Minemura will be waiting for you, so I hope you can ask later.

The last topic is the CSR round-table conference. This was also the conference I held last month, and I had a lecture after the day, but I did not report it to everyone, so I think it is a good opportunity, so I will introduce it.
The teachers on page 2 gathered to see the Nagoya Second Ring and then had a round-table conference. This CSR Committee listens to various opinions in compiling the CSR report, and the CSR Report announced in June this year incorporates the opinions of everyone in this Committee. I am.
Even during the field visit, there were opinions that primary school students might want to see more, and that environmental issues are important. The last line of the material feels a little confusing, but I think it's a company with such flexibility, but it's also encouraging to be praised by outsiders with such eyes, and I write it to you. I thought about it, but I wrote it for the time being.
CSR is one of the main pillars of our management policy in the future, but I also heard opinions about that, but I also heard that continuity is important, wide area tourism, pellet stove, but also chips etc. Please see the sign again. It is always said that there is an opinion as to whether it is possible to make the sign easier to see like in foreign countries, and in the end, it is a comfortable road that is really appreciated by residents of the area and drivers using the road. I thought that I would come back to the question of how to build a safe, secure and comfortable road.
I am grateful to everyone for giving me a very dry opinion and supporting a very mediocre company. Photos are attached to the materials, so I hope you will refer to them.

The story in the first paragraph has become long, but I've now finished the explanation from me.

 

(Moderator)

Then, thank you if you have any questions.

(Reporter)

I would like to ask you about the current state of the business, but the number of vehicles passing has decreased for the fourth consecutive month compared to the actual results of the previous year. Looking at the types of cars, it means that the number of medium-sized vehicles and large-sized vehicles is also decreasing, but I think that the reason is that the distribution of trucks is decreasing, but again, the number of passing vehicles is decreasing. Please analyze.

(Chairman)

I haven't gotten to the point of saying that yet, but I was wondering if the recession of the economy would reduce logistics, which would have an impact on large vehicles, but until now I have managed to hold back It was It's a big number, 7 to 8%, not 1 to 2%, so I understand if it's a warning signal. Also, there are various charge policies for mini cars and regular cars, and general vehicles are often used on Saturdays and Sundays, so I think that the charge measures are supporting the bottom. Looking at the trends in the total number of passenger cars used, it decreased once in June, returned to July, and has been declining since August. Looking at large vehicles, in April they were 107.9% of the same month last year, in May 104.1%, and in June it was 103.0% when it was 96.7% overall. In July, I am doing my best at 108.9%. However, from August it was 96.2%, and in September it recovered to 102.8%, in October it was 99.5%, and this month it was 93.2%. So I think we have to look at the signs here so seriously. I think that short-term changes may continue to rise and fall, but I think it is important to see what kind of trends we will pursue over the long term. I take a warning signal that a large car cut below 95%.

(Reporter)

Related to this, the price of gasoline is now falling, and it seems that there are places in Nagoya city that are below 100 yen, but even if the price of oil is falling, the number of passing vehicles is decreasing by this amount. What is the sense of crisis or how to accept it?

(Chairman)

In terms of traffic volume, the lower prices and the lower oil prices are positive factors. This is definitely true. However, I can't say for sure that I can't stand the long-term trend of the economy, but I have a feeling as a person who manages roads.

(Reporter)

I think that ETC is becoming more and more popular, but the average weekday average utilization rate exceeded 80% for the first time from December 5 to December 11, but I would like to hear the reason for this increase. What kind of impact will it have?

(Chairman)

I think it is being helped by the emergence of national tariff measures. Then, the measures for the next step have not been realized yet, but I think that predicting such things is also a cause of acceleration. And, after all, I think that ETC has come to be convenient when the usage rate exceeds 70% or 70% and 5 minutes. We are, premium Drivers' but has been put out something called card, which also has been growing with a jerk at the here. After all, I think that the deeper understanding of ETC as a whole and the rate policy are pushing ETC's back.

(Reporter)

On the other hand, since normal lanes are also running in parallel, I don't think it has been linked to labor cost reduction or anything like that, but how do you perceive the impact on management? .

(Chairman)

The discount increases as ETC increases. Under the national policy, adjustments are made in various ways, such as leasing fees to the mechanism, but other than that, the late-night discounts and commuting discounts that come before are at your own expense, so your income will inevitably decrease. Looking at the numbers alone is a pressure factor, but I think that it will be better because there are more people using the road, so I will try hard even if I clench my teeth there. The ETC discount rate has now exceeded 28%, and I think it will eventually reach 30%. I would rather like to hear your opinions on whether ETC will really reach 100%. There are people out there who don't like cards, and I don't know how far they will go, but I'm wondering if the ETC discount rate will exceed 30%. Even though we have income of 65 billion yen, it is actually less than 50 billion yen. So that's a huge burden, but it's about trying.

(Reporter)

The number of medium-sized and large-sized cars, or so-called high-priced cars, has decreased, and the number of light cars has increased. There are also ETC cars. Is there any impact on your business plan in the future?

(Chairman)

Of course it has an influence. I am thinking of doing a review work from now on. Future traffic volume problems, economic activity, and toll revenue. And as I explained earlier, on the other hand, the burden of repair costs on aging roads has increased. I think that various elements are in a new state, so we are currently implementing the new management plan 2008, but we are reviewing it and starting preparations, and by March we will call the new management plan 2009 5 I plan to make a one-year plan and put it into practice. I'm sure it will have an impact.

(Reporter)

There is a management plan 2008 that is currently running, and I will repaint it and summarize it by March.

(Chairman)

That's right. 2008 is a five-year plan up to FY2012. We do rolling every year, reviewing it, and making a new five-year plan, but it's hard to understand the future. Therefore, the budget for the first year will be the budget for the current year for each department. After that, it's still a plan. Every year, the upper and lower limits expand like a fan. I wonder how to judge it, but I think this is the most important work. For the time being, how do we take into account the new and unprecedented harsh conditions that are occurring now? I hope that work will be done by March.

(Reporter)

How much did you think the usage rate of ETC would increase?

(Chairman)

Far beyond the original schedule.

(Reporter)

How was your original plan?

(Chairman)

It was 76% in fiscal 2008, but it is about 78%. 2% is very big. But I think it must be taken as a reality and corrected. It means that income will be reduced accordingly. And if the fare is lowered by various measures, the traffic volume may not decrease so much, or it may be supposed to make up for the impact of the economic downturn, but if traffic congestion increases as a result, road traffic will increase. It's going to get hurt, and I can't let the service go down, and I'm trying to make the toilet shiny, so I'll take all that into account and make a detailed plan. I would like to announce it to everyone once it is completed. From now on.

(Reporter)

In connection with the current story, private companies have almost finished announcing the interim financial results, but what is the status of the plans and results of Central Nippon Expressway for the current term? Is it appearing as?

(Chairman)

After all, the numbers are affected. Somehow, we plan to make a profit in the interim period, and we will announce it on the 22nd, so please see it.
I think the road business is quite tough throughout the year. In a big flow, I will do my best in that area as well, but my major policy is to do my best in related businesses as well so that the company as a whole can do its best.

(Moderator)

If there are no other questions, we will end the 38th regular press conference.
Thank you for being busy today.

(Chairman)

Thank you very much.