October 21, 2009 Chairman Yano's regular press conference

(Moderator)

Now that it's time, let's start the regular press conference. Well, then, I'm looking forward to working with you.

(Chairman)

There are several projects today. First, I would like to explain the current status of our annual business.
Regarding September, first of all, regarding Expressway, toll revenue in September was -19.8% compared to the same month of the previous year. High speed is -19.3%, and Ichiyu is -24.6%. Although it is the number of traffic, the daily average is + 5.0%. High speed is + 3.9%, and Ichiyu is + 9.5%.
Although it is the meaning of this number, September was also influenced by Silver Week. In addition to that, for the same reason as before, we judge that various discount systems have increased and are having an impact.
Although it is a discount amount of ETC, it is 31.8 billion, which is almost double compared to last year. Last year was 16 billion.
The ETC discount rate is about 45.8%. The income without ETC discount is 69.5 billion yen, which is 10.3% higher than last year. Next is the construction situation, which has not changed from last month, so I will omit it.

I always say that the traffic situation by vehicle type is how the number of vehicles passed, but 108.7% for mini vehicles, 107.7% for ordinary vehicles, 90.3% for medium-sized vehicles, 89.1% for large vehicles, and 87.5% for oversized vehicles. %, 103.9% overall.
Looking at this in terms of mileage, light vehicles account for 126.1%, ordinary vehicles at 128.1%, medium-sized vehicles at 92.1%, large-sized vehicles at 92.5%, oversized vehicles at 91.6%, and overall 116.3%. I think this is also the result of the fact that there was Silver Week and the trip length became longer.

Next, regarding the status of ETC, the usage rate was 84.6% this month. Looking at the latest week, it increased by 85.1% from October 2nd to 8th, 84.3% from September 4th to 10th of the previous month, about 1%, which is similar on weekdays and Saturdays and holidays. It has become a trend. The cumulative number of on-board units installed is 28.25 million.

Next, regarding the status of the service area, sales are 124.1%. Looking at food and beverage sales, the total is 126.6%. Holidays account for 149.1% and weekdays account for 103.4%, and the influence of holidays is the same as before. Looking at the breakdown of food and beverage sales, the food and beverage sector accounted for 123.2%, and product sales accounted for 128.7%. In the gasoline sector, this is 117.1%. Although there was a unit price difference of 45 yen / L, the amount of refueling increased by 158.2%, and it is supposed to increase by 17.1% as a whole. The service department accounted for 125.8%, and the advertising department accounted for 91.7%. The above is the outline of the business.

Next is the topic.
There are several cases, but we will report the analysis results of the bidding status that is reported quarterly.
In the three months from July to September, there were 79 successful bids, and the average successful bid rate is 82.6%. Looking at Figure 1, there were 138 cases, or 83.4%, from April to September. Table 1 shows the successful bid rates for the main types of construction for the past three months, but to mention only the characteristic points, the superstructure of the PC bridge, which is 100.4%. If there are special conditions for this construction, we are no longer using the construction technology competitive comprehensive evaluation method, but by doing so, we can bid and contract even if the contract limit price is exceeded. As a result, the winning bid rate exceeded 100%.
Also, there are construction types with a relatively low winning bid rate, electricity, landscaping, and sound insulation walls, but in the case of these construction types, looking inside, the number of bidders at the time of bidding has increased, and it seems that more competitiveness has worked. We are here.
Next, as shown in Figure 2, the situation is low bidding.
Compared to 2007 and 2008, the incidence rate from April to September is as high as 50.0%. This high incidence has continued since December of last year. One of the reasons for this is that the standard price for the construction work after December of last year, which is investigated at the time of low bidding, has been revised and the standard price has increased.
However, there is a low bid priority survey that was newly introduced after June of this year, but for this, the winning bid rate, which requires a survey, is 75%, but the occurrence rate of low bids below this is introduced. It has been halved compared to before, and I think that the effect is appearing. In addition, due to the disqualification criteria introduced at the same time, there are two cases where the lowest price presenter could not contract.
Figure 3 is a graph showing the status of bid failures, failures and failures. In the last three months, the number of malfunctions has been 16 and the incidence is 11.6%. Compared to last year, it has dropped to about half. This is due to the application of a bidding method such as the open-call quotation consultation method, and we believe that the effects of this countermeasure against malfunctions have emerged. Regarding unsuccessful cases, as soon as we review the ordering method and decide on a response policy, we are proceeding with the procedures one by one, and we have already reached a contract for three works.
The above is the first topic, the quarterly report on the bidding status.

Next, I was very worried about the recovery situation from the earthquake in the Tomei Makinohara area, but I was able to survive without the recent typhoon No. 18. While proceeding with the committee after that, we are proceeding with various incidental works, and Managing Director Yoshikawa will report on the current situation in that area.

 

(Managing Director Yoshikawa)

My name is Yoshikawa and I am the General Manager of the Maintenance and Service Business Division.
Now, I would like to explain based on the materials of Tomei Expressway disaster emergency recovery (current status report) of the earthquake whose epicenter is Suruga Bay. Due to the earthquake that occurred around 5:07 on August 11, Tomei Expwy the slope of the embankment near Makinohara SA collapsed. So far, we have held the committee twice. August 17th and September 28th. This time, we have examined the investigation boring results, cause analysis, and this restoration countermeasure work (draft), which were deliberated by the 2nd Committee, so we would like to report the general situation. In addition, the extraction of areas with similar conditions to this restoration measure for the relevant part will be deliberated at the 3rd Review Committee scheduled to be held on October 27 (Tuesday).
The first page is the damage situation and recovery situation.
Please turn to page 2. The local situation and the current work situation. At the site, there are no displacements or road cracks, and the situation is stable at this point. The section was closed to traffic with a continuous rainfall of 300 mm, but in consideration of emergency restoration, we are doing it on the basis of closing the road with a continuous rainfall of 150 mm, but as the chairman said, October We were very worried when Typhoon No. 18 passed on the 8th. Fortunately, the rainfall was relatively low at 43 mm, so there was no displacement. Regarding the current work situation, in preparation for this restoration work, (1) temporary drainage work, (2) construction road, (3) temporary bridge, (4) work yard maintenance, and (5) river runoff measures for colluvium have been implemented.
Next is page 3. We will report on the progress of additional reinforcement measures for the embankment that has been restored in an emergency. Since heavy rains due to typhoons and autumn rain fronts were expected, we have received the opinions of the teachers of the study committee for the purpose of improving the stability of the slopes, and we are implementing or are currently implementing strengthening measures. As for the contents of the additional reinforcement measures, as shown in the figure below, 13 catchment boring are planned, the red part in the figure has already been completed, and the blue part is the unimplemented part. Of the 13 pieces, 8 pieces in the lower row were completed on September 19. Another reinforcement measure was the placement of deterrent piles, which was planned to have a maximum length of 16.5 m and 16 piles, but was completed on October 18. The catchment boring aims to lower the groundwater level, and the deterrent piles deter slip. In the future, we plan to proceed with the upper five bowling by the end of this month.
Please turn to page 4. This is a report of the results of the survey boring that was being conducted. The figure shows the cross-sectional view in the direction perpendicular to the Tomei Expressway as the "main cross-section ①-①" and the cross-sectional view parallel to the Tomei Expressway as the "sub-section ②-②". The light-colored surface in the figure is called the Sagara Formation Mudstone, which is the basement rock here. On top of that, there is a layer of valley bed deposits as a sedimentary layer. On top of that, it is shown that the embankment was being built during the construction of the Tomei Expressway. The pink line in the figure is the assumed groundwater level, and the red line is the assumed slip surface where it collapsed. The stratum composition table is as described.
On the next 5 pages, I will briefly explain the mechanism of how the slope collapsed. Figure "(1) Before road construction (40 years ago)" is an estimate from the plan view at the time of ordering construction and the results of this geological survey. It is estimated that there will be bedrock in the mudstone layer and there will be valley bed deposits on it. The figure "② When sharing the road (use of mudstone that easily weathers)" is for sharing, and there is a part of the lower road body of the road embankment that is filled with mudstone. It is presumed that the structure is such that the Makinohara gravel layer, which is a high-quality material, is used for embankment. Figure "③ Road sharing several years later-immediately before the earthquake (mudstone weathering / groundwater rise)", but this structure itself causes the mudstone, which is easily weathered, to dry or get wet due to the action of water due to the infiltration of water for many years. Repeatedly, it gradually became mud and became like a clay layer, and it is thought that the groundwater increased due to the decrease in strength and permeability. In such a state, an earthquake with a measured seismic intensity of 5.9 occurred on August 11, and as a result, a slip as shown in Fig. "④ After the earthquake" occurred. It seems that slippage would have occurred in the embankment. This is briefly described on the next page, but to summarize, the cause analysis is as follows: 1) ① The slope collapse has occurred in the embankment. This is because the results of the survey boring and the retaining wall at the bottom of the embankment are not moving and are in the same position as before the collapse, so it is probable that the slope collapsed on the slip surface. As for (2), it seems that the area was in topographical and geological conditions where water could easily collect. Then ③ It seems that the groundwater level at the collapsed point was high. ④ means that mudstone that is easily weathered was used at the bottom of the embankment, and good quality gravel was used at the top, and ⑤ means that the embankment was constructed as specified at the time of construction. As I mentioned earlier, the probable cause is described in 2), but the mudstone at the bottom of the embankment has suffered a decrease in strength and permeability due to the action of water for many years, and as a result, the inside of the embankment has decreased. It is highly probable that the earthquake caused the collapse due to the rise in the groundwater level.

Although this is a restoration measure, the basic policy is (6. ①) to use a construction method that does not have a significant impact on the passage of the main line, and we believe that construction from outside the main line will be the principle. As stated in (2), safety is the first priority in construction, and the construction method, etc. is decided by comprehensively considering early completion, workability, economy, etc. Then, as a design condition, this area has collapsed and may have been restored in an emergency, so as described in (1), we would like to take the method of replacing the colluvium soil as much as possible in this restoration. I will. In addition, as shown in (2), the embankment structure of the relevant part is considered to be peculiar for emergency restoration, so large styrofoam, large sandbags, and soil stably treated with cement are included in the embankment road. Since it is different from the structure of the embankment of the general part, we think that it is designed in consideration of safety against earthquakes. Then, as a constraint condition, we think that the construction will be carried out within the range that does not affect the adjacent side roads and graveyards. In addition to the treatment, the embankment will be made of high-quality material with good water permeability, and some of the embankments have already been placed, but if a restraint pile is constructed to ensure the stability of the embankment. Then, I would like to finish the protective work as shown in the figure (cross section) that the protective work will be installed to ensure the stability of the slope.

As a reference on the last page, the Disaster Review Committee has been held twice so far, and we are receiving various discussions from Chairman Ota and other members. This time, the 3rd meeting is scheduled to be held on October 27th (Tuesday), and this will be the final report. We are planning to discuss countermeasures. that's all.

 

(Chairman)

Next, I would like to explain about the highway campaign Mie 2009 Autumn.
Regional Head Office on October 8th, but we are planning to tie up with the Mie Prefecture Tourism Federation. I used to do it in the spring, but after that, the traffic volume will increase due to the discount, so I'm planning to do it in the fall this year.
There are various coupons and plans to win gifts by lottery, but it's just the 5th anniversary of Kumano Kodo World Heritage registration. In addition, there is the Ise Jingu Shikinen Sengu event, and the beginning of the replacement of the Uji Bridge in November, and we are positioning it as a campaign to commemorate such a thing.

Next, regarding the relationship with the quick valve, this is what we will announce today, but there is a company called UNY, and there is a store called Apita, which this company operates in Aichi, Gifu, and Mie. There is a nationally famous ekiben specialty lunch fair held in a part of it, and from this 31st to February 14th next year, we will sell it for a total of 10 days including Saturday and Sunday. Starting from the autumn menu, we will enter the winter menu in December, and it will change like that, but we are going to do this.

And finally, regarding the environment, I prepare at least one theme each time and report it to everyone, but today I will report on regional saplings with the cooperation of elementary school and elementary school students. The content is to pick up acorns.
This is an acorn grown by us as a regional sapling and used for Expressway
We started in 1995, but so far we have picked up acorns 11 times, and about 1,100 people have participated. We have planted trees 12 times and have planted a total of 20,000 trees. This time we are planning an elementary school in Sagamihara City, but one is Shonan Elementary School, which ended on the 19th. A total of 9 people from the 1st and 2nd grades participated.
Then, on Friday, October 30th, we are planning to have about 80 first and second graders at Goryo Elementary School. The first school I mentioned was a small school with a small number of 9 students, but the total number of students is over 60, so it means that they often participated. A photo is attached below.
That concludes my explanation.

 

(Moderator)

So I'd like to take your questions.

(Reporter)

At the press conference last month, there was talk of a change of government, but by today's press conference, there was talk of a social experiment, such as a review of the four lanes due to the suspension of execution of amendments, or the budget for the new year (budget request). However, there was a statement by Deputy Minister Noda that it should be reviewed again, but please tell us what you think about these two points.

(Chairman)

We accept that the issue of four lanes is "reserved". It's not a cancellation. Regarding design and surveying, I have already placed an order for some work, but I will proceed with that. For businesses that have not been ordered yet, I think we will consider the transition after this.
This is a project with high expectations from the local people, but since this is a national policy, we are in tune with it and are waiting for the next development.
Also, we have heard through everyone (reports) that those involved in this budget are preparing hundreds of billions of yen in resources for free. When I ask, I understand that the contents have not been decided, so it will be decided in the overall budget formulation, including what kind of scale it will be. It may not be clear when it will be, whether it will be within the year, how far it will be packed within the year, such points and specific contents, so I would like to look at the situation for a while and think about various things depending on the result. I am.

(Reporter)

If it is an average year, while the budget request for this period is visible, how do you think about such things as the change of government, the uncertain future, or the suspension of business? Are you there?

(Chairman)

I've come with various expectations, so I'll brake a little and respond to changes in the situation. Such a big change is rare, so this is a good idea. I think that way because we will respond. There are many other default businesses, and we would like to proceed quietly as planned. We have unified our intentions within the company based on the ideas I have mentioned so far, so I think we can do that. Of course, I have a desire to come up with a concrete plan.

(Reporter)

Tomei Expressway, it seems that the cause of the slope collapse was analyzed and it was affected by the geology and the situation, but it will be investigated in the future whether a similar situation will occur on your company's route. How to prevent recurrence?

(Chairman)

I would like to inspect similar parts. If the cause is clarified, we can roughly assume similar parts, so I would like to check that and work on it.

(Reporter)

When will this restoration work be started? For construction ... How much will it be at this stage?

(Director Yoshikawa)

The 3rd Committee will be held on October 27th, and I would like to start promptly based on the results.

(Reporter)

When to start?

(Director Yoshikawa)

I would like to consider the contents of the measures and go. We are doing the emergency restoration and reinforcement work that I explained earlier. Part of the reinforcement work can also be used for the main restoration, and we would like to start the full-scale restoration as the reinforcement work progresses.

(Chairman)

I think I can explain the details after this committee, so I would appreciate it if you could come and visit us.

(Moderator)

If you don't mind, this is the end of today's regular press conference. Thank you very much.