Tokyo mulling expressway toll surcharges during 2020 Games

February 2, 2019

Tokyo--The Tokyo metropolitan government and the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee are considering introducing expressway toll surcharges to curb traffic volume during the games, informed sources have said.

The metropolitan government and the committee will present their estimates on the new Metropolitan Expressway charges at a meeting of an experts' panel Wednesday.

According to the sources, the surcharges will be imposed mainly on private vehicles to allow automobiles related to the games to travel smoothly. Trucks, buses and taxis will be exempted.

The Tokyo government and the committee are considering introducing the extra charges only in sections in central Tokyo, which has many games venues and companies.

At present, the maximum toll on the expressway is 1,300 yen for cars larger than minivehicles, whose engine displacements are 660 cc or less.

Details of the surcharges will be discussed later, including whether to set fixed charges or to charge by distance. The introduction of surcharges requires approval of the central government and the assemblies of local municipalities.

Tollgate system reforms will also be necessary so that vehicle types can be distinguished with the electronic toll collection system.

The metropolitan government and the committee aim to reduce the traffic volume in the greater Tokyo area by some 15 pct from weekday levels during the games.

They forecast that traffic jams in the area will be twice worse than the current levels if no measure is taken.

Expressway users have been asked to cooperate, including by changing parcel delivery times and increasing the use of railways. But it is uncertain whether the measures will be effective enough. Jiji Press