In addition to the heat of summer, Tokyo area traffic jams are a major concern for when the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics will be held two years from now.
If the issue is not addressed properly, both the management of the Games and economic activity as a whole could be affected. Therefore, the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Tokyo metropolitan government plan to release detailed "traffic volume forecasts" based on the event schedule.
Similar to weather forecasts, people would be able to access the forecasts on smartphones and other devices to check traffic predictions, with the aim being to reduce traffic jams in Tokyo.
During the Games, Tokyo is expecting about 240,000 Olympic participants, officials and staff, as well as about 7.8 million spectators.
Because the Games will overlap with the summer tourist season, traffic jams on the Metropolitan Expressway could be twice as bad as usual.
The organizing committee is considering implementing measures such as traffic control on the expressway by closing certain entrances and exits.
However, the committee believes that is not enough. "We can't address the situation if we don't reduce the number of vehicles driving around Tokyo," a committee official in charge of the matter said.
According to the event schedule announced last week, the first weekday event to be held after the Friday, July 24, opening ceremony will be the triathlon slated to start at 8 a.m. on Monday, July 27.
Spectators for this and other events, along with commuters, vehicles on business and others could become concentrated in central Tokyo.
Further, finals of popular events such as judo, tennis and the women's marathon are scheduled for the weekend of Aug. 1-2 in the middle of the Olympics. Large crowds are expected to create jams around these venues.
This kind of detailed event schedule, as well as information on event venues, practice venues, road traffic networks and other factors would be used to analyze and forecast the times, roads and areas where traffic volume needs to be reduced.
These results would be published as traffic volume forecasts on websites, apps and elsewhere.
Traffic reduction targets, detour routes, railway crowding updates and other information would also be provided to help businesses and individuals move around more efficiently.
Rethinking distribution
To regulate traffic volume during heavy times, the organizing committee also plans to involve various industries, including shippers, distributors, warehouse operators and others, in a reexamination of the shipping system.
A meeting with companies from each industry is to be held soon to discuss shipping routes and times that would minimize the impact on Games management and economic activity.
Joint shipments and other options will be explored, and trial runs may also be launched.
However, about 40 percent of shipping companies in Tokyo said they cannot change the times for pickups, deliveries and other things in an October survey by the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
"If fresh food isn't delivered at a set time every day, there will be problems," an official of one company said.
"We have fixed delivery times and other matters with our customers," another said.
"It's not an easy thing to do, but the cooperation of each individual and each company will lead to achieving major changes," a committee member said. "We hope that before the Games begin, almost all companies and individuals will be able to contribute in some way."
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
