Breaking Through the 'Hyper-Car Society' with Municipal Bus Revitalization: Toward a 'City Where Everyone Can Move Freely'

Introduction
Do we not give up on the freedom of movement for those who cannot drive by saying, 'Our city is a car society'?

Oyama City in Tochigi Prefecture is a hyper-car society. 69% of Oyama citizens' means of transportation is by car, while buses account for only 0.3% (based on a 2018 survey). In the past, route buses were in operation, but as private cars became more popular, bus ridership declined, and unprofitable private bus routes were withdrawn in 2008. The only buses in the city are community buses operated by the city itself. Even on the best routes, there is only one bus per hour, which can hardly be called convenient. People in the city thought, 'Buses are uncool; they are for the elderly.'

Against this backdrop, the project was launched with the goal of creating a 'city where everyone can move freely, even without a car.'

Project Launch
The trigger was a national grant. A proposal for a bus improvement project, infused with the thoughts mentioned at the beginning, passed the selection process and was adopted in August 2018. With the budget secured, Oyama City's buses began to move significantly. The first thing we thought was necessary was to refresh the image of the bus. We wanted to make citizens who do not ride buses aware of their existence. We wanted people to ride the bus casually and think, 'A life with buses is nice; it's rich.' In a strategy meeting to realize this, the idea of 'creating an information magazine for all citizens' was proposed. On the other hand, there was also a point made that 'it is meaningless to create a new information medium if the service does not change at all.' Taking this point into account, we decided to take on the challenge of introducing an all-line unlimited ride commuter pass.

The Birth of the City Bus All-Line Commuter Pass
Focusing on 'cheap' and 'all-lines,' we sold a commuter pass called 'noroca,' a play on words combining 'let's ride' (norou ka) and 'slowly' (noro-noro). The pricing was 70% off the conventional commuter pass. Moreover, it offered unlimited rides on all lines.
The barrier to introduction was high. There was strong opposition from within the city hall fearing the risk of revenue loss, so we convinced them by making it a one-year limited sale and deciding whether to continue sales based on an evaluation of the revenue. As a result, it was confirmed that revenue did not decrease but rather led to increased revenue and more users, so it became a permanent commuter pass rather than a limited-time one. The number of commuter pass holders is 1,051, about 9 times higher than before the introduction (April 2024). The number of student commuter passes is about 30 times higher at 434 (April 2024), and as more young people ride the bus, they can now be seen waiting for buses in the city, bringing vitality to the town.

Information Magazine Bloom!
The first step in refreshing the image was to deliver bus information to people who were not interested and get them interested. Even if we said 'let's ride the bus,' people wouldn't pick it up. So, we thought about disseminating information by blending route maps and timetables into an information magazine. The first issue of the information magazine Bloom! was not focused on buses, but was designed as a city information magazine, introducing attractive spots and route maps that fit into daily life. In the second issue, we included a timetable as an appendix and featured a special section on thinking about a day in life using the bus. Each issue included a letter where people could send their impressions and opinions to the city hall, and in the third issue, we carefully and sincerely created and published the city's responses to those opinions. As a result, we received a great response through letters and emails every time Bloom! was published, which led to an increase in bus users.

After That
In Oyama City, the momentum to make buses more convenient is growing. The mayor and the city council have also been understanding, and the annual budget has doubled from approximately 100 million yen to approximately 200 million yen. In addition, long-term investment is clearly stated in the administrative plan. The Regional Public Transportation Plan (February 2023) sets out 'services where the working generation chooses public transportation instead of private cars.' In seven years, we have realized the establishment of 3 new routes and the increase and enlargement of 13 routes, and the number of users continues to increase, with the achievement of development goals also in sight.

Conclusion
This article is a manuscript contributed to the book 'Construction: Challenges for the Future - Experiences of Professionals Responsible for National Land Development,' published before the publisher's editing, and is published with permission. If you are interested in how it was edited by the editor or other articles, please purchase it.