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26 Japan Railway & Transport Review 24 • July 2000

Railway Reform and International Exchange

Feature

Copyright © 2000 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

JR Kyushu’s International Connections

Yoshiteru Choami

Introduction

JR Kyushu was one of the six regionalpassenger companies formed whenJapanese National Railways (JNR) wasprivatized in 1987. Right from the start,JR Kyushu has been guided by twopolicies—’Put the customer first’, and‘Maintain close local ties’. These twopolicies also guide our relations with otherrailways worldwide.Kyushu is one of the four main islandsforming the Japanese archipelago and isvery close to South Korea and China. Thelargest city in Kyushu is Fukuoka City (1.3million population). It is about 200 kmfrom Hiroshima, a similar distance fromPusan, the South Korean port with apopulation of 4 million. It is also about1000 km from Tokyo, a similar distancefrom Seoul in South Korea, Pyongyang inNorth Korea, and Dalian, Qingdao andShanghai in China.As a result of its proximity to mainlandAsia, Kyushu has always had closehistorical links with Asia, especially Koreaand China. The Chinese Gishi Wajin-den(the section introducing Japan in thechronicle of the Wei dynasty) text fromaround A.D. 280 describes cultural,political and trade links over 2000 yearsago between Kyushu and China. TheChinese Gokanjo (the chronicle of theLater Han dynasty) dating from aroundA.D. 400 records the gift of a gold seal inA.D. 57 from the Chinese emperor to theking of Na in Japan. A gold seal excavatedin Shikanoshima in the suburbs ofFukuoka is believed to be this same seal.Kyushu’s geographical and human linkswith Asia have become more evidentrecently as a result of strengthening ofinternational economic ties. During 1997,about 344,000 people from Asia, 85% ofall foreigners, entered ports in Kyushu.The statistics also show that approximately609,000 people departed for Asia,representing 55% of all departures to

foreign countries through Kyushu ports.This trend is generally rising each year1.Kyushu’s 1997 exports to Asia werevalued at about ¥2 trillion, representingabout half the island’s total exports.Imports from Asian countries were valuedat about ¥1.4 trillion, representing 43%of the island’s total imports. This Asianemphasis had been growing annually2 butthe currency crisis that hit some Asiancountries in 1997 caused a severe dropin Kyushu’s exports to Asia, and in thenumber of people landing in Kyushu fromAsia. The crisis damaged Kyushu’seconomy too and there are still somerepercussions. However, the rapidrecovery of the Asian economy since lastyear has seen the number of people fromAsia landing in Kyushu return to previouslevels and exports to Asia have enjoyed asimilar upturn.Clearly, Kyushu’s economy is closelylinked to Asia and beyond. The KyushuDevelopment Promotion Plan forms onecomponent of Japan’s ComprehensiveNational Development Plan adopted lastyear by the Japanese government. Theformer plan is based on the assumptionthat Kyushu is a distinct region ready todevelop in tandem with Asia.The end of the Cold War and the rise ofeconomic globalization have spurred twonew trends: international deregulation(that promotes adoption of globalstandards), and development of newi n f o r m a t i o n t e c h n o l o g i e s ( I T ) .Deregulation and IT are transformingeconomic structures and world trade, andare promoting a global market. Japanesecorporations must now take world marketforces into consideration when makingcost–price decisions, and must competeon a level f ie ld with companiesworldwide.There is a growing movement to forminternational corporate alliances, andthese alliances often involve capital tie-ups and joint operations. Free trade hasforced companies to compete with

imported goods and materials. Even acompany that produces and sells onlywithin its domestic market must considerthe ‘international price’ before decidinghow much it can charge for its products.Corporations worldwide have entereduncharted waters where success is nolonger assured just because one companyis more competitive than other companiesin the same country.The transport industry is no exception.Carriers, especially airlines flying oninternat ional routes, face severecompetition and are restructuring in orderto survive. With gradual deregulation ofJapanese domestic routes, a number ofnew airlines have entered the market andprice wars are occurring even betweenwell-established companies. NewcomerSkymark Airlines charges only ¥13,700 fora one-way ticket on the Tokyo–Fukuokaroute, half the normal fare of other airlines.Lower air fares have reduced passengernumbers on the Tokaido and San’yoshinkansen from Hakata (Fukuoka) toTokyo, and on conventional lines linkedto shinkansen lines as well. Express busservices from Fukuoka to Tokyo havesuffered, because the one-way fare of¥15,000 is no longer attractive.Today, airlines, railways and express busesset fares in a way that flies in the face ofearlier common sense. Even railwaycompanies, whose business field isnaturally domestic, have been forced todeal wi th the indi rec t threat o finternational competition on long-distance hauls. Railways now find itnecessary to cultivate ties with importantcompanies abroad, hoping to developother transportation-related fields. The JRGroup, to which JR Kyushu belongs,cannot ignore international economicforces.JR Kyushu established its first overseasrelationship in 1987, when Hakata Stationformed friendship ties with Pusan Stationin South Korea and the Korea–Japan JointTicket was first issued in 1988. Another

27Japan Railway & Transport Review 24 • July 2000Copyright © 2000 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

JR Kyushu international venture began in1991with a high-speed ferry betweenHakata and Pusan. Then, in 1996, JRKyushu signed agreements with theDalian Railway Co., Ltd. (formerly DalianRailway Sub-administration, branch ofShenyang Railway Administration), andw i t h t h e S h a n g h a i R a i l w a yAdministration.Asia is a major theme in JR Kyushu’spromotion of tourism and productdevelopment—the company advertisesitself under the slogan, ‘We’re strong onAsia’. However, the company alsocultivates ties with Europe. As describedin the other article by Mr Donald Hatch onpp. 18–25, Kyushu and the Netherlandshave comparable areas, populations andGDP. It was thus entirely appropriate thatJR Kyushu and NS Reizigers (Dutchpassenger railways) signed a cooperativeagreement in 1997.The Netherlands has some of the world’slargest and most competitive seaports,airports, banks and corporations. TheDutch are aware of their strengths as amaritime nation. They are also aware ofglobal trends and are always ready todevelop new strengths and meet newchallenges. Unlike the Netherlands,Kyushu is not an independent country,and it is situated in an entirely differentgeographic region on the opposite side ofthe Eurasian continent. Still, JR Kyushubelieves that its links with NS Reizigerswill further enhance mutual railwaybusiness performance. We also believethat a greater awareness of lifestyles in theNetherlands will provide opportunities tohelp stimulate Kyushu’s economy.Currently, JR Kyushu has exchanges withmore than 10 railway companiesw o r l d w i d e ( K o r e a , C h i n a , t h eNetherlands, India, Georgia, Zambia,Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia,Lithuania, Poland, and Bulgaria) throughe i the r i ndependen t p ro jec t s o rparticipation in international projects offoreign aid organizations such as the Japan

International Cooperation Agency (JICA).Technical cooperation and traineeprogrammes are two aspects of theseexchanges because personnel exchangesare an essential part of globalization andexpanding exchanges will increasemu tua l unde r s t and ing , t he rebystrengthening economic ties. JR Kyushuin t ends t o con t inue p romot inginternational communications in the hopethat this will further open up Kyushu toAsia and the rest of the world.

JR Kyushu’s CloseRelationship with Korean

National Railroad

JR Kyushu and Korean National Railroad(KNR) began a relationship in October1987, when Hakata Station formedfriendship ties with Pusan Station.Although the two companies are indifferent countries separated by the 230-km Korea Strait (Tsushima Kaikyo), theirfield of operations are close, and JRKyushu is convinced that it can boostridership and help revitalize the localeconomy by fostering contacts withpeople from a wider area, rather than

relying only on domestic travellers.As described earlier, Kyushu and theKorean Peninsula have had contacts formore than 1500 years. However, the longcenturies of contact were sometimesmarked by discord, and this gave rise tothe saying that Japan and the KoreanPeninsula are close geographically, but farapart in spirit. But relations with SouthKorea have improved rapidly in the lastfew years and now is an opportune timefor JR Kyushu to cultivate ties with KNR—ties that will hopefully spur other effortsto deepen relations between the twocountries.

Jetfoil services between Hakataand PusanJR Kyushu and KNR agreed that aconvenient ferry connection linking theirrail networks would boost the number oftourists visiting both countries. Thiscommon understanding led to the 1989signing of an agreement on high-speedferry operations and consultations wereheld to examine marine transport issues.Fast passenger jetfoil services linkingHakata and Pusan in 2 hours and 55minutes were started in March 1991. It

Beetle II jetfoil running between Hakata and Pusan (JR Kyushu)




was not all smooth sailing— ferrynavigation can be difficult across this straitand various measures were needed toattract people to the service, explainingwhy the first few years of operations werenot easy.However, to boost attendance at the 1993Daejeon Expo in South Korea, the SouthKorean government lifted its requirementthat Japanese tourists obtain an entry visain advance and began encouragingJapanese people to visit South Korea.Korea’s various activities to attractJapanese tourists and improve serviceshelped maintain high ridership (Figure 1).The jetfoil services between Fukuoka/Shimonoseki and Pusan have enjoyed topshare in terms of total passengers andpassenger-to-capacity ratios. In May

sector. Since 1990, some employees havebeen posted temporarily to Seoul forliaison and information exchange withKNR. Executives from both companiesvisit each other’s offices to exchangeopinions.JR Kyushu also provides technicalexpertise needed to improve operations.For example, we have sent engineers toSouth Korea to demonstrate rail weldingtechniques, a technology at which thecompany excels.

Other efforts to raise tourismJR Kyushu is also improving its productsfor tourists to South Korea and arrangestours of more people to South Korea thanany other agency in Kyushu. Some tourstake history as their theme with theintention of fostering greater mutualunderstanding. In cooperation with theKorea National Tourism Organization, lastyear, we began selling very popular toursto the sites of the Bunroku (1592) andKeicho (1597) military campaigns.Another package, called ‘Journey toPaekche’, offers travel in coordinationwith KNR to the area that was once the

1998, a second vessel was added betweenHakata and Pusan.T h e 2 0 0 2 Wo r l d C u p s o c c e rchampionship (to be held jointly in Japanand South Korea) offers JR Kyushu andKNR the chance for closer collaboration,with a view to increasing capacity andimproving ferry services. This shouldencourage more tourists to visit Kyushuand South Korea.

Joint promotion efforts by JRKyushu and KNREven before the joint JR Kyushu–KNRjetfoil service began, the two companieshad already started a number of other jointprojects aimed at increasing ridership oneach other’s railways. The fruit of oneproject was the Korea–Japan Joint Ticket,launched in 1988 by the JR Group,including JR Kyushu.In 1993, JR Kyushu began selling itsKyushu Rail Pass in South Korea, allowinguse of the jetfoil services and rail travelwithin Kyushu. The JR–Kyushu Rail Passwas launched in 1998 to satisfy demandfrom travellers coming by air from SouthKorea.To serve Japanese living in South Korea,JR Kyushu has also introduced a seatreservation system in Seoul. For its part,KNR began selling excursion tickets forits rail services with hotel benefits to non-Koreans. JR Kyushu is the agent for theseticket sales in Japan. We hope to continuecollaborating with KNR with a view todeveloping other convenient products.

Sharing management-relatedinformation and technicalexpertiseThe South Korean government is seriouslyconsidering privatizing KNR in 2000 andthere is much that could be learned fromJapan’s privatization of JNR in 1987. JRKyushu is always willing to provideinformation on various issues, fromorganizational structure to the pursuit ofbusiness opportunities outside the rail

Cover of pamphlet introducing tours to sites ofBunroku and Keicho military campaigns (JR Kyushu)

Cover of pamphlet introducing the JR-Kyushu Rail Pass(JR Kyushu)


ancient Korean state of Paekche. Suchtours are boosting the number of Japaneserail passengers in South Korea, at a timewhen Japanese tourist volumes to thatcountry are still low.KNR’s desire to attract Japanese tourists isamply demonstrated by the fact thatKNR has started Japanese-languageannouncements on its Saemaul express.Since 1996, the Japan Korea Strait TourismPromotion Council has held meetings topromote South Korea and Kyushu as asingle tourism zone; representatives fromboth JR Kyushu and KNR are majorparticipants at the meetings, and bothrailways are continuing to promotetourism by rail.

Future prospectsWe have seen how JR Kyushu and KNRare collaborating in promoting rail andferry operations, and tourism. Ourrelationship has become more than justthe typical form of cooperation that onewou ld expec t be tween ra i lwaycompanies. As KNR moves towardsprivatization, we look forward to evenmore collaboration in various fields. Atthis time, when projects of a cooperativenature are being discussed by our twocountries, we feel confident that evenmore concrete action on our part will helprevitalize the economies of both SouthKorea and Kyushu, and even lead to betterrelations between our two countries.

Cooperation with ChineseRailways

Kyushu–China interchangeJR Kyushu and Chinese Railways (CR)established amicable ties in 1987—thesame year that JR Kyushu became aprivate company, and the same year thatit established friendly ties with KNR.With a cultural history of 3000 years anda population exceeding 1.2 billion, it goeswithout saying that the People’s Republicof China is one of the world’s most

Figure 1 Hakata–Pusan Jetfoil Service Statistics

Second jetfoil service introduced

1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

46 44 60 87 101 115 132 174

88%93% 96% 96% 96% 96% 95% 96%

33% 29%

39%

60% 61%

70%

80%

60%

0%0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

110%( x 1000 passengers)

Passengers Non-cancellation ratio Passenger-to-capacity ratio

Table 1 JR Kyushu Exchanges with Railways in China

Table 2 Trainees from China

�

November 1988February 1989 –January 1990

February 1992April 1996

June 1996

November 1996

September 1997November 1997 –February 1998April and September 1998December 1999

ContentsBegan accepting traineesBegan accepting trainees from Dalian Railway, a branch of Shenyang Railway Administration* Long- and short-term trainees were accepted in subsequent years as well. (See Table 3 for trainee numbers.)

Began marketing Joy Road's China tour productsRailway station fellowship agreement between Kokura and Dalian stationsAgreement with Dalian Railway Co., Ltd.Shanghai Railway Administration chief visited JR Kyushu with 5 staff membersFriendship agreement between Hakata and Pusan stationsAgreement with Shanghai Railway AdministrationExotic Silkroad TourTrainees from Dalian Railway Co., Ltd.

Executives from Dalian Railway Co., Ltd. visited JR KyushuPendulum tilting train engineers dispatched to assist Dalian–Shenyang high-speed project

November 1988February 1989–January 1990December 1990June 1991–June 1992February 1992October 1992June 1997October 1997–February 1998October 1997May 1999

Focus of trainingAutomatic inspection of rolling stockRailway communicationsRailway technologyRailway communicationsJapan-China railway technical cooperationElectric powerBusiness planningBusiness planning and tourist industryTourist industryBusiness planning

Number of trainees41515511141

(JR Kyushu)

(JR Kyushu)

Source: Data from Kyushu Railway Company Today, 1999 edition,published by JR Kyushu




Cover of pamphlet introducing Journeys South ofYangtze River Tour (JR Kyushu)

Cover of pamphlet introducing the Exotic Silkroad Tour(JR Kyushu)

important countries. Its vast size andpopulation are a huge market withtremendous tourism potential. Fukuoka,Kyushu’s main city, is only a 2-hour flightto Shanghai and Dalian—much the sametime as the flight from Fukuoka to Tokyo.A flight from Fukuoka to Sapporo inHokkaido takes about 4 hours, the sametime as it takes to fly from Fukuoka toBeijing. This geographical closenessexplains Kyushu’s close contact withChina since ancient times.Since our rail operations are so close toChina, it was only natural for JR Kyushuto promote closer relations with CR witha view to fostering technical exchange andtourism.

AgreementsIn the early stages, there was no signedagreement setting out the cooperationparameters. Since 1988, at the request ofJICA, we have accepted long- and short-term trainees from China on an almostannual basis, offering them experience invarious fields (Tables 1 and 2).Joy Road, our travel agency handling touroperations, has been selling tours to Chinasince 1992. However, CR was notinvolved directly in either of theseventures.

Against this backdrop, we begandiscussions in 1995 to establish ties withCR. An agreement was signed in April1996 with Dalian Railway Co., Ltd.(formerly the Dalian Railway Sub-administration of the former ShenyangRailway Administration). A similaragreement was signed with the ShanghaiRailway Administration in November ofthe same year. Railway station friendshipagreements were signed between KokuraStation in Kyushu and Dalian Station inApril 1996, while Hakata Station teamedup with Shanghai Station in November ofthe same year. This was the beginning ofexchanges between each pair of stations,and these exchanges have spurred furthere x c h a n g e b e t w e e n t h e l a r g e rorganizations.

Exchanges with Dalian RailwayCo. Ltd., and Shanghai RailwayAdministrationOur affiliation with Dalian Railway Co.,L td . and the Shangha i Ra i lwayAdministration has resulted in:• Dispatch and acceptance of trainees• Cooperation in development and

operation of tours

• Procurement of railway materialsThe first concrete result of our 1996agreement with Dalian Railway Co., Ltd.was a 4-month training programme inbusiness planning and tourism promotionfor an executive from Dalian. Before thisprogramme, Dalian Railway’s touristbureau handled only domestic travel andcould not easily respond to the needs offoreign tourists. The programme providedtraining in development of tour productsthat will appeal to international tourists.After completing her training, she returnedto China and now acts as a liaison for JRKyushu, primarily in the Dalian region.One interesting product we developed inconjunction with CR is the Exotic SilkroadTour on a special Chinese train thatdeparts from Beijing on an 8-day, 3744-km journey to its final destination atUrumqi. The exotic charm of the tourexplains its great popularity. Followingthe success of this tour, we organized andmarketed a series of Chinese tours onspecial trains. In collaboration withDalian Railway Co., Ltd., we developedNostalgic Cit ies tours to Dalian,Changchun, Shenyang and other locales.In addition, in collaboration with the

April 1996 signing of friendship agreement linkingKokura and Dalian stations (Mr Ishii, then President ofJR Kyushu, shaking hands with Mr Wu Jing Xiang,Director of Dalian Railway Co., Ltd.) (JR Kyushu)


Shanghai Railway Administration, wedeveloped Journeys South of the YangtzeRiver tours to Shanghai, Suzhou, Nanjing,and other cities. These unique tours havebeen very popular and have gonesmoothly because of our amicablerelationships with railways in China.In addition to tour products we developedwith CR, we are also organizing andmarketing tours to destinations littleknown by most Japanese. As oneexample, our Eight-day Tour of Shangri-La, brings tourists in contact with world-famous natural wonders. It received theSpecial Prize for Destination Promotion,one of the 1997 Tour of the Year awards.Our conscientious efforts in China havebrought us praise we are pleased toacknowledge.Procurement projects have involved cableconduit troughs, rolling stock parts andother items. We have also dispatchedrolling stock engineers to Dalian andShenyang to assist with a project toincrease train speeds after electrificationof the Dalian–Harbin line. We areproviding technical information on ourSeries 883 natural pendulum tilting trains,and are participating in studies that willdetermine whether a pendulum system isfeasible for trains on this line.

Future potentialAs I have pointed out, JR Kyushu’sassociation with railways in China has ledto training programmes, personnelexchanges, development of tour products,promotion of tourism in each other’scountries, procurement of railwaymaterials, and the transfer of railway-related technologies.China’s vastness and huge population hasgood tourism potential and there are anumber of positive signs, such as a trendtowards easing travel restrictions. Thisindicates a great potential for mutual,wide-ranging business opportunities. JRKyushu hopes to expand its associationwith CR, especially with Dalian Railway

Co., Ltd. and the Shanghai RailwayAdministration, and to pursue projects thatwill benefit everyone.

JR Kyushu’s CooperativeAgreement with NS Reizigers

This year marks the 400th anniversary ofJapanese–Dutch relations after De Liefde,a Dutch trading vessel, was disabled anddrifted ashore in northeast Kyushu.During Japan’s long period of isolationthrough the bakufu shogunate period, theNetherlands was the only western countrythat had trade relations with Japan throughDejima Island in Nagasaki Bay.On 18 October 1997, JR Kyushu and NSReizigers (NSR) signed a cooperativeagreement promoting consultations onrailway operations and management.Both railways have similar businessenvironments, scales of operations, andchallenges. For example, they bothoperate under principles promotingcomplete privatization, and they mustcompete against other transport modes.It was against this background that JRKyushu and NSR realized that friendlyre la t ions would lead to mutua ldevelopment and so they signed anagreement.

Setting the highest standardsIt was clear that before a cooperativerelationship could promote better railwayoperations and management, bothcompanies would first have to understand

each other ’s business situation andcorporate policies. Without such anunderstanding, it would not be clear whatgoals could be achieved and what couldbe learned from each other. The twocompanies therefore began by conductingdiscussions and benchmarking that wouldhelp them deepen mutual understandingand determine possible areas ofcooperation.As a result, it was realized that JR Kyushu’sstrong suit was punctual operations whileNSR was strong in marketing. In 1997,JR Kyushu’s trains were an average of 36seconds late—far lower than the 90seconds recorded by NSR—and especiallynoteworthy because 1997 was a bad yearfor typhoons. Normally, JR Kyushu hasan even better punctuality record.The separation of operations andinfrastructure in Europe resulting from EUDirective 91/440 is leading to greatercompetition. NSR is a major player in theEuropean rail market, and there is nodoubt that if it improves its performanceand on-time operations, it will be at anadvantage when bidding for operations.In the Netherlands, automobiles andmotorcycles are used for 80% of alljourneys, and the private car is by far themost preferred method of commuting.Therefore, NSR has decided to focus onoff-peak times. Its Off-Peak Card providesusers with a 40% fare discount during off-peak hours (from 0900 until the last trainon weekdays, and all day on weekendsand holidays). Users pay an annual fee

Table 3 Comparison of Kyushu and the Netherlands

Sources:1. Statistics for Kyushu, Nishinippon Shimbun’s Data Book for Kyushu 1999, published by

the Advertising Department of The Nishinippon Shimbun.2. Statistics for the Netherlands, 1998 World Almanac, published by Kyodo News Service

Kyushu The Netherlands

Area (km2) 42,157 41,574

Population 13,459,000 (1998) 15,520,000 (1996)

GDP (US$ billion) 450.6 (1995) 392.4 (1996)

Car ownership 6,678,000 (1996) 5,740,000 (1996)




to purchase the card but it provides accessto other services as well. When the 40%discount is combined with otherdiscounts, the card permits travel at lessthan half the normal fare. It is veryattractive to the public and is creating newdemand. Off-Peak Card purchasers areincorporated into a database used fordirect mail marketing.JR Kyushu believes it can learn much fromNSR’s marketing techniques, especially ata time when train ridership in Japan isdeclining due to the falling birth rate andaging population.

Joint study sessionsNow that the discussion stage has ended,we have decided to hold a number of jointstudy sessions with a view to sharingknow-how and experience with theultimate aim of improving our respectivepositions and operations. We havereached an unofficial agreement on howthese study sessions should be organized.Each company will select an area thatappears to offer great potential for them

and then appoints experts to study thatarea. The experts will meet theircounterparts when necessary and will alsoexchange information by e-mail. Eachjoint study project will last a maximum of1 year and a report will be presented toboth parties at the end.In September 1999, the head of NSR’sMarketing Department and an expert fromthat company visited JR Kyushu at ourinvitation. Their presentation on scientificmarketing methods had a big impact onall participants from our company, topmanagement and experts alike, and weimmediately realized that joint study inthis field would be extremely beneficial.For its part, NSR asked us to accept someof their personnel to learn punctualoperations and we are now preparing forthis.Both parties are eager to proceed withthese projects because we both recognizethe potential benefits. Study sessions willbegin as soon as both sides have signed amemorandum of understanding.

Holland–Japan Rail CruiseOne exciting project receiving muchattention in Japan and abroad is theplanned Holland–Japan Rail Cruise, thefirst such project to be pursued jointly byJR Kyushu and NSR.To mark the 400th anniversary of relationsbetween Japan and the Netherlands, anexciting 14,000-km rail cruise has beenorganized. The number of participants islimited to 50 from Japan and 40 from theNetherlands. NSR will hold a departureceremony in The Hague, the location ofthe royal palace of Huis ten Bosch, andthen passengers will depart on the OrientExpress next day. Four different luxurytrains will take the passengers through 10countries with stopovers in 15 cities ortowns, including Prague, Moscow, andSamarkand. After arriving in Beijing,passengers will take a chartered flight toNagasaki and then travel to nearbySasebo, the location of the Huis ten Bosch

theme park, where JR Kyushu will host awelcoming ceremony as a fitting finale tothis extraordinary journey.Planning the rail cruise meant resolving anumber of complex issues such as theroute and trains to use. JR Kyushu andNSR pooled their resources, each takingadvantage of its strong points. Forexample, NSR operates rail services in theNetherlands, a country that has longserved as an important gateway to Europe.Consequently, NSR was well positionedto obtain essential information on railtransport in the countries of the formerSoviet Union. JR Kyushu’s successfulexperience arranging trains for the ExoticSilkroad Tours in China was also veryuseful in developing and marketing thisrail cruise.The westward voyage from Hollandthrough the Magellan Straits to Japan 400years ago by De Liefde is beingcomplemented this year by the eastwardrail cruise traversing the Eurasiancontinent from Holland to Japan,completing a global circumnavigation andcementing Dutch–Japanese friendship.Although JR Kyushu’s affiliation with NSR

Signing of agreement between JR Kyushu and NSReizigers (Mr Ishii, Chairman of the Board of JRKyushu, exchanging mementos with Mr Den Besten,NS Chairman) (JR Kyushu)

Cover of pamphlet introducing Holland–Japan RailCruise (JR Kyushu)


is still in its infancy compared to theaffiliations with KNR and CR, we will doour best to ensure that our collaborationwill lead to a relationship that is beneficialto both sides for many years to come.

Future Challenges

JR Kyushu cannot ignore the many newchallenges, such as internationalization,the IT revolution, deterioration of theglobal environment, falling birth rates, andan aging population, that are emerging asthe global economy and Japan’s socialenvironment undergo tremendouschanges. Like other companies, wecannot ignore international developmentswhile planning future operations. As wetackle each challenge, we are focusing onthree key areas: the environment, Japan’saging population, and the IT revolution.

• The environmentThe environment is reaching a criticalpoint but environmental problems cannotbe solved without global cooperation. Asone step in this direction, participants atthe 1997 Convention on Climate Change(COP3) held in Kyoto agreed on targetsto reduce their CO2 emissions. For its part,Japan agreed to cut emissions to 5%below 1990 levels. Consequently, it isnot surprising that attention has turned toone of the most environment-friendlytransport modes—trains. To play a fullrole in solving these difficult problems,railway companies must share theirenvironment-related technical expertiseand knowledge worldwide. They shouldalso wage PR campaigns promoting useof trains. But a company that onlyadver t i ses i t se l f as the sens ib leenvironmental choice will not attractmany more customers. This can only beachieved by upgrading services.

• Japan’s aging populationJapan’s population structure is changing

rapidly; the population will peak around2007 (when one person in four will be65-years old or older3) and will then startdeclining rapidly.Local regions often try to increase theirpopulation by attracting new industries,but this method is ineffective nowadaysand local economies can only bedeveloped through the interaction andmovement of people. From this concept,it follows that JR Kyushu should take stepsto increase Japanese domestic traveldemand and should encourage moretourists to visit Japan.In the last few years, personal income inAsia has risen as national economies haveexpanded and the resultant rise indisposable incomes has made it possiblefor more Asians to travel abroad. Kyushu’sproximity to mainland Asia poses thequestion of how to attract more Asiantourists. We are already on the right trackwith the above-mentioned internationaljetfoil services between Hakata andPusan, but if JR Kyushu and localgovernments do not do much more toattract foreign tourists, they will probablygo elsewhere.

• IT RevolutionThere is a tremendous IT revolutionunderway—e-mail, mobile phones, theInternet, etc., are transforming work,business and organizations into aborderless world. These new trends areattracting new energies and leading tonew developments that no-one canpredict. However, we do know thatelectronic commerce is creating a

worldwide marketplace and we canassume that future technical innovationswill add impetus to this trend. JR Kyushuintends to meet the challenges of theseadvances.We cannot shut our eyes to the fact thatglobal business means intensifyingcompetition. We must remain fully awareof international trends, and take bolddecisions based on knowledge developedthrough affiliations with other railwaysboth in Japan and elsewhere in the world.JR Kyushu is on the right track to becomingan international and competi t ivecompany in the 21st century. �

Notes:1, 2 and 3: Nishinippon Shimbun’s Data Book for

Kyushu 1999, published by Nishinippon Shimbun

Yoshiteru Choami

Mr Choami is JR Kyushu Senior Managing Director and Director General of Corporate Planning

Department. He joined JNR in 1966 after graduating from the Faculty of Law at the University of

Tokyo. He was appointed Finance Director of JR Kyushu in 1987 at JNR privatization.

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