Transport policy and organisation in Japan.

In transport terms, Japan has an enviable reputation for effectively operating an incredibly complex road and rail system. However, relatively little is known about how this is done or about the issues that are facing policy makers and shapers there. The purpose of this paper then, is to investigate how land passenger transport is organised in Japan, and to begin to evaluate how effective this is. This is done by drawing on a literature review and on findings from a scoping study based on a series of semi-structured in-depth interviews with key practitioners. Overall, the findings suggest that national and local transport policy in Japan faces a number of key challenges across all modes in the land passenger transport system, in particular relating to the fragmented approach to policy development, implementation and operation and to the growing role of the car.