This paper focuses on the impact of deregulation in 2002 on the taxi industry in Kyoto City. By examining the diversification of the taxi industry’s services as a reaction to this policy change and the relationships among taxi companies, the local government and local communities, the author investigates the industry’s ability to solve existing problems associated with local residents’mobility and transportation facility supply. To pursue this investigation, the author conducted interviews with major taxi companies in Kyoto City, the taxi association of Kyoto Prefecture, and the city’s bureau in charge of transportation.
The main findings are summarized as follows: First, the diversification of taxi companies’services in the city has been motivated by hopes for improving the working environment of employees at the companies and contributing to local communities through solving the above mobility/transportation problems. New services include airport shuttles, long-distance flat fare, operation focused on movement-limited people (i. e., the elderly and physically handicapped) and advances in the deployment of buses to public-transportation-poor areas. Such services are also intended to compensate for decreased revenue in the taxi business but not to make a huge profit. Second, the taxi companies have participated in both sustaining conventional transportation modes and supporting new needs, regardless of profitability. This suggests that these services can be convincing solutions to the problems. Third, Kyoto City as a local government has supported those services by creating an operational environment, especially where local areas suffer transportation problems, leading to a point of contact between the city and the taxi industry. Although the government has regarded autonomy of the companies and local residents as important, both the government and the residents acknowledge the taxi companies’contributions to local communities through supplying new helpful services.
The above findings suggest that the taxi companies in the city have successfully responded to the deregulation policy by diversifying their services and improving their businesses. The significance of this study can be viewed as follows: First, the case taken up here is a good example of ‘industry supporting general life and movement’advocated by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, which calls for the appearance of new comprehensive mobile services covering diverse needs. Second, the positive attitudes of the taxi industry and involvement of the local government in the industry, mainly as embodied in institutional structures, can be applied to other cities where similar mobility/transportation problems are found.
