This section of the Meitetsu Hiromi Line has become an important means of transportation in the region, with high school students and others commuting to and from school accounting for about half of the passengers. However, the overall decline in the number of users has made it difficult to maintain the service, so Kani City and Mitake Town have provided operational support totaling 100 million yen (30 million yen and 70 million yen, respectively) to keep the line in operation. In FY2023, a “study group” will be established with the national government, Gifu Prefecture, Meitetsu, and others to investigate and study the future of the route. The three cities and towns along the line have held a series of discussions with Meitetsu with the aim of shifting to a “deemed separate upper and lower system” starting in April 2027, but no agreement was reached in the end.
What is the Deemed Upper and Lower Separation Method? The normal “vertical separation method” separates the operation of trains (above) from the ownership and management of infrastructure (below), with local governments and other entities owning the infrastructure (land, facilities, and rolling stock) and bearing the maintenance costs. In contrast, the “deemed separation of the upper and lower portions of the infrastructure” method under consideration does not transfer ownership of infrastructure and other assets to local governments, but allows the railroad company (Meitetsu) to continue to own and operate the facilities, while local governments along the rail line bear only the costs associated with the maintenance and management of the infrastructure (the portion corresponding to the “lower portion”). This “deemed” system has the advantage of avoiding the hurdle of municipalities owning their own railroad facilities and of not decreasing property and other tax revenues from the railroad company to the municipalities.
© Source travel watch