A Review of Recent Transportation Geography in Japan

Abstract

The purposes of this study are to summarize the achievements of recent transportation geography in Japan since 1990s and to reconsider the changing trends based on socioeconomic changes in Japan. Additionally, issues which should be addressed by transportation geographers are reviewed. Most recent studies of transportation geography have concerned automobile transportation and regional public transportation. Many studies on automobile transportation have been found in Japanese transportation geography: diffusion of motorization and its effect on regional structure until the mid-1990s, and the effect of transportation infrastructure, including highways, until the mid-2000s. Meanwhile, micro-scale studies on regional public transportation have increased since the early 2000s. In other words, the interest of Japanese transportation geography has shifted from the positive effects of transportation to the issues confronting regional public transportation. The following can be pointed out as factors of the change: drastic socioeconomic changes since the 1990s such as a protracted recession, an easing of regulations, and an aging society. Transportation geographers are needed to address the following issues. The first is the construction and operation of flexible types of transportation, such as DRT (Demand Responsive Transportation), to correspond to regional characteristics from a short-term standpoint. The second issue is improvements in the regional structure, including spatial distribution of the population and essential facilities from a long-term standpoint. An approach from a transportation geography perspective is important for resolving the issues on public transportation with consideration of regional characteristics.

Data on the number of passengers using buses in Abashiri city, Hokkaido, from 2013 to 2018

“…In Japan, the number of bus passengers is decreasing despite the necessity of public transport as a means of moving around for the elderly [1]. The data can be very valuable for planning different means of public transportation that may replace buses in the future.…”

Progress of research on transportation geography in China

“…Before the 1990s, the studies mainly concentrated on exploring the impacts of high-speed rail, expressway and aviation network on accessibility and economic development (Okada, 1994). Now studies have changed to concentrate on urban automobile transport and regional public transport, and their impacts on regional structure and economic development (Koichi, 2014). As a developing country, Peru has focused mainly on urban mobility issues, on the link between rural development and accessibility, and on broader trans-boundary connections (Keeling, 2015).…”