On the afternoon of the 15th, Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Saito officially announced that he would issue a ``supervision order'' to JR Hokkaido, which continues to face difficult management, to improve its management.
We plan to provide a total of over 100 billion yen in support over the three years starting in the new fiscal year.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism issued a legal "supervision order" to JR Hokkaido in 2018, asking it to take steps to improve its management, and has provided financial support, but the spread of the new coronavirus Due in part to this, business conditions did not improve during this period, and JR Hokkaido continued to seek support from the government.
In response, Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Saito held a press conference after the cabinet meeting, and on the afternoon of the 15th, he issued a supervisory order to JR Hokkaido to improve its management, and announced that it would provide support from the new fiscal year onwards.
According to the announcement, JR Hokkaido will provide a total of 109.2 billion yen in support for capital investments such as the introduction of hybrid vehicles and the automation of maintenance equipment over the three years starting in the new fiscal year, when JR Hokkaido's new medium-term management plan begins.
Additionally, regarding the eight sections that JR Hokkaido deems ``difficult to maintain on its own,'' the company is requesting that drastic improvement measures be compiled for each line section by the end of fiscal 2026.
Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Saito said, ``Improving JR Hokkaido's management is an important issue from the perspective of ensuring sustainable transportation services in the region.I would like to see the company compile fundamental improvement measures.''