Summary of Minister Ibayashi’s Press Conference
Overview
At the November 6, 2026 press conference of Tatsuhiro Ibayashi, Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, questions covered the railway network, the Chuo Shinkansen maglev, a second Seikan Tunnel, and the Hokuriku Shinkansen. The minister called for consideration of core networks that should be maintained from a national perspective and measures to make them sustainable, and said he was unaware of any increase in the maglev’s construction costs. He identified challenges facing the second Seikan Tunnel and said he would monitor discussions among the stakeholders. He also said the Katsuragawa proposal for the Hokuriku Shinkansen lies within the project area in the published environmental impact assessment scoping document, so the assessment need not be redone.
Key points
- The study group will consider core networks to maintain from a national perspective and measures to make them sustainable.
- He said he was unaware of any increase in construction costs for the Shinagawa–Nagoya section of the maglev.
- He said the second Seikan Tunnel faces many challenges and that he would monitor the stakeholders’ discussions.
- He said the Katsuragawa proposal falls within the project area in the scoping document, so the environmental impact assessment need not be redone.
Overview
The minister described railways as social infrastructure connecting communities across Japan and said they support daily life, business, tourism, and logistics through high-volume, reliable transport. Population decline and increasing motorization have created a difficult environment not only for local rural lines but also for trunk lines served by limited express trains and freight rail. Since the breakup and privatization of Japanese National Railways, conventional lines have generally been owned and operated as private businesses.
The press conference covered the desirable shape of the railway network as a whole, construction cost projections for the Chuo Shinkansen maglev, the proposed second Seikan Tunnel, and the Katsuragawa proposal for the Obama–Kyoto route of the Hokuriku Shinkansen and its environmental impact assessment.
Impact
The minister said the second Seikan Tunnel is expected to improve logistics efficiency and strengthen national resilience, while noting that it raises many issues for consideration, including project costs and technical matters.
Details
Measures for local lines have included the restructuring council framework under the Regional Public Transportation Revitalization Act and the use of grants for comprehensive social infrastructure development. The minister said it is also necessary to maintain and secure essential trunk lines and strengthen their functions. He called on the study group to consider, in light of socioeconomic changes since the breakup and privatization of Japanese National Railways, the “core networks” that should be maintained from a national perspective and measures to make them sustainable.
For the Shinagawa–Nagoya section of the Chuo Shinkansen maglev, JR Central is reportedly reviewing the construction schedule. The minister said he was unaware of reports of increased construction costs and would respond appropriately, including by advising JR Central as needed, to support opening the line as soon as possible.
A private-sector group has announced a concept for a second Seikan Tunnel, and the lawmakers’ league to which the minister belongs is also examining it. The minister said that, as Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, he would first continue to monitor discussions among the stakeholders.
For the Tsuruga–Shin-Osaka section of the Hokuriku Shinkansen, the Katsuragawa proposal for the Obama–Kyoto route was presented in July this year, following a review within the ruling parties, as a proposal intended to meet the five conditions for starting construction. The minister explained that the environmental impact assessment scoping document published in November 2019 sets the project area at a maximum width of 12 km, and that the Katsuragawa proposal lies within that area, so the assessment need not be redone. He said he had no comment on the Environment Ministry’s judgment from his own position.