NEXCO CENTRAL (Central Nippon Expressway Company Limited)




February 22, 2007 Chairman Yano's regular press conference

Conference Summary

(Chairman)

Hello everyone.
First, I will report on the current state of the business.
After that, I will inform you about some topics.

Although it is for January, the total fee income is 1.7% higher than the same month last year. The breakdown is 1.7% for high speed and 1.3% for Ichiyu. Passengers increased by 6.8% year-on-year. High speed is 6.3% and Ichiyu is 8.7%. Blessed with good weather this year, the amount of precipitation and the amount of snowfall were low, so both toll revenue and the number of vehicles passing through increased.

The construction situation has not changed.

The contract rate of successful contracts for the main types of work was 82.12% in January. The cumulative total for the year was 81.88%.

Regarding the ETC situation, comparing February 9th to 15th with the period from January 5th to 11th a month ago, the average daily number of passengers increased by 15.9% compared to the previous month, and the average daily utilization rate was It was 67.8%, down 0.2% from the previous month. The cumulative number of onboard devices installed at the end of January was 1.8% higher than at the end of December, increasing 240,000 units to about 13.86 million units. The usage rate was 67.8%, but it was 72.1% on weekdays and 62.0% on holidays. Holiday utilization is an issue. As I explained last month, I would like to make various new efforts to improve the utilization rate.

Regarding the SA situation, it has increased by 7.8% compared to the previous year, and it has increased by 5.3% in the cumulative total for the year. Looking at the number of traffic, it has increased by 6.8% compared to the previous year, but sales are higher than that. It is slightly above 1%. It is a breakdown of plus 7.8, but with the food and beverage department increasing by 7.7%, the product sales department by 8.5%, the service department by 6.9%, and the gas station department by 6.7%, we are in a situation where each department is growing overall.

The above is the current state of the business.

Next, I will explain about ETC planning discounts. The materials we have distributed are not new since they were released in a press release on the 16th of last week, but since they were announced before this conference, I would like to touch on them a little.

Hokuriku Expressway that the Spring Festival "Hokuriku three prefectures ETC weekend free pass", but I did also in the Hokuriku in the fall, "also want to use before and after the holiday" or "from the customer at the time the Tokai-Hokuriku Expressway Hokuriku three prefectures from I wanted to go," and I made a new plan with that in mind.
Reception starts from March 1st, but it is a mechanism to use 2 days out of 4 days from mid-March to 1 month from Friday to Monday. It will be about the end, but April 14th and 15th is the Takayama Festival, so I hope you can take advantage of this opportunity. We have made various collaborations with local tourism associations, and this time, the results have come to the fore.

Then, as for a new project in the future, I think that the actual announcement will be made early next month, but we are planning a "tour of the mountains of Kai and Furin Volcano." We are planning a two-day passport. From early to mid-April, we are considering discounted products that allow you to travel around the entire Yamanashi prefecture, with the Tokyo metropolitan area as the departure and arrival area.
It's getting a lot of attention in the Taiga drama, so I'll try to pick it up, and I will announce it again early next month. In any case, it is significant to proceed with the project while tying up with local tourist destinations. Since we can get the cooperation of the locals, I think that we can make a plan that is really useful for travelers. I want to make a good plan as the days go by and the years go by.

The second topic is the opening of a convenience store and Starbucks. This is was what I am allowed to be announced today, as your handouts, in March Fujikawa SA In-bound Starbucks coffee in it from Ashigara SA In-bound to Lawson, Ashigara SA of Out-bound at the Starbucks coffee and Family Mart, a total of four stores Will be newly opened.
In the case of a convenience store, it is the first open since privatization, so 8 stores are already open, but it will be the first time after privatization. This year, we have two stores, but as I explained from the beginning, we will continue to do so one after another.
Starbucks coffee was very popular, and last year it opened at Ashigara SA In-bound, Fuji River Out-bound, and Hamanako SA, but it's made a line.
When constructing stores, we are working to address environmental issues by calling them “eco shops”. Also, we are cooperating with those who open stores from the perspective of store management. I have attached photos of 4 new stores, but it looks like this. We also have a list of current cafe shops and convenience stores.

Since then, we have been working on speed dialing as a new business for SA/PA since November of last year. This was only done in the Chubu area until now, but I wanted to expand it in the Kanto region as well, so I got a lot of trouble. Tomei Kohoku PA, Fujikawa SA, Chuo Expressway ・ Dangozaka SA, Tomeisaka Gozaisho SA, or Tomei Ebina SA There are 9 sites when included, but we are proceeding with the plan with 5 SAs in total.
In addition, I would like to hold a tasting party for everyone, and I will inform you again, but I would like to do such a project after March 10th. The detailed contents will be officially announced on the spot.

that's all.


(Moderator)

That's all for the explanation from us. If you have any questions, thank you.


(Reporter)

Hokuriku Expressway free pass, it was said that it was implemented in the fall of last year and was well received. How many people have used it? Also, please tell me the difference in product content from the previous time and how much you expect to use this spring.


(Chairman)

I had a lot of reflections on the free passes in the three prefectures of Hokuriku that I did in autumn. The plan itself is good, but I received requests to improve the contents, for example, to use the Tokai-Hokuriku Expressway or to use it not only on Saturdays and Sundays, but also on Fridays and Mondays, and last time Since it was announced at the last minute, it is necessary to have a margin this time, and it means that this project was made based on such reflection.
Last time, the number of actual users was only 37, but this time, if possible, I would definitely like to put it in the third digit.

In a way, it is also an opportunity to publicize our ideas, so I think it is better to increase the number of people who use it, but I think that there is a greater meaning in continuing planning. I am thinking, so I would like to plan a little longer. I have talked about March and April today, but there are other holiday seasons, so at such times we will make new projects and gradually Central Japan will continue to provide services to drivers and travelers. I want you to know that you are doing it.


(Moderator)

Unless you have any other questions, today's regular press conference will end.


(Chairman)

Thank you very much.