Bicycles are not allowed on the Onaruto Bridge, which links Shikoku to Awaji Island, but a service that allows cyclists to load their bikes onto trucks to be carried across has attracted few customers.
The municipal governments of Naruto, Tokushima Prefecture, and Minami-Awaji, Hyogo Prefecture, which face each other across the Naruto Strait, launched the service in October last year.
In its first year, only 200 bicycles were transported, other than at major cycling events. This was only 10 percent of the target.
Limited runs and lack of public awareness are possible causes the cities are looking into as they reevaluate the program.
In 1990, the ASA Triangle area promotion association was formed to promote human exchanges and vitalize Naruto and Minami-Awaji, together with their neighbor Higashikagawa, Kagawa Prefecture. The organization carries out programs in sports, tourism and other areas.
Amid an ongoing cycling boom, routes such as the "Awaichi" course around Awaji Island have become popular.
In October last year, a cycling course passing by famous sites and gourmet spots in the three ASA Triangle cities was created. However, it is necessary to cross the Onaruto Bridge to visit all of them.
To enable cyclists to go between Awaji Island and Shikoku, a company associated with Yamato Transport Co. was contracted to carry bikes across the bridge.
The service is available by reservation on weekends and holidays, with three runs per day. The fee is 500 yen per bike for a one-way trip, with owners catching a bus that runs between Naruto and Minami-Awaji for 880 yen.
However, as of the end of October only 200 bikes had been transported.
While 410 bikes were transported during a cycling event in March to open the Naruto-Minami-Awaji course, an official with Naruto city's strategic planning department said figures from that event were not counted toward the goal of 2,000 bikes.
This fiscal year, the Hyogo and Tokushima prefectural governments began considering creating a bike lane on the Onaruto Bridge.
The strategic planning official said the bike transport service "was meaningful for bridging the gap until bikes are allowed on the bridge. We plan to continue the service as its operations undergo a thorough review and we keep forging ahead with getting the word out."
March event
Naruto, Minami-Awaji and the Hochi Shimbun newspaper are planning a cycling event for March 24 that will take off from Boat Race Naruto in Naruto.
There will be a course of about 120 kilometers and also a 65-kilometer course where participants will sample Naruto specialties, Tokushima ramen and other treats. Both courses will make use of the bike transport service.
The event is open to people 16 years old and older. Applications can be submitted on the event's website. For details, please contact the Hochi Shimbun's project department at (06) 7732-2016.
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