Kibe In Japan, the concept of “public” seems narrower than what is accepted in other countries. Here, private (individual) rights are well protected, and public and private matters are clearly distinguished. Ideally, however, all of us should think about and discuss the meaning and scope of “public” to build a city, instead of just insisting on our own rights. In the Aichi Arena project, we had to tackle a landscape ordinance (Note 2). A government setting regulations and inviting the private sector to express its ideas freely may seem to contradict each other, but in the future, it will be important for us to aim at achieving both.
Sawada What you are suggesting is that we need to have a vision, such as a comprehensive and circular flow of the economic system and well-being, and thorough discussions to evolve our existing methods. However, while the resulting new creations will generate a successful outcome, we also need to consider how we should deal with the deteriorating “existing things,” that is, Japan’s civil engineering constructions and other infrastructures. With decreasing population and tax revenues, how can we maintain them? Or will we decide to close them down? We need to restructure our infrastructure.
Kibe If we adopt the concession approach, the private sector will eventually manage roads that are not tolled, like in Europe. And to do so, digitalization will be the key. If we adhere to the existing style where the government provides public services, smaller towns will no longer be able to maintain their roads due to insufficient tax revenues. But if the private sector could enter the market, and the system could become standardized through digitalization, then there would be no need for a single municipality to complete budgeting and management on their own, and there will be a possibility for more efficient implementation.
Sawada On the other hand, with the evolution of telecommunications, such as IOWN, the next-generation information and communications infrastructure envisioned by NTT, satellite communications, for example, can connect areas where roads and water systems are not yet developed. Such technology could work with the self-driving technology expected to become available in the future and help implement mobility technology necessary for daily life as a standardized model. Because digital technology can be personalized, we need to strengthen our ability to think about how to develop and realize it.
Kibe INFRONEER Holdings’ slogan is “Challenge the Status Quo.” As society begins to shrink amid a paradigm shift, what kind of society and cities should we create with innovations such as digital technology? The Aichi Arena is a pioneering response to this question. I hope our effort will expand to other areas as well.
Sawada The fusion of real and virtual, the concession scheme, and BSM―the Aichi Arena is full of possibilities that can extend to other projects such as roads and bridges. I believe we are in an era in which the private sector should move away from passively contracting work and change society’s fundamental concept of infrastructure construction.
(September 1, 2022, at NTT Headquarters. Editing: SHINKENCHIKU Editorial Department)
