A Study on Feasibility of Consolidated Transportation of Passengers and Cargos by Municipal Bus combined with Community-based Cargo Transportation Service in a Depopulated District - Based on an Experimental Operation in Nishimera Village, Miyazaki Prefecture -

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the feasibility of consolidated transportation of passengers and cargos by a municipal bus combined with community-based cargo transportation service managed by a residential organization in a depopulated district. Based on the ‘experimental operation’ designated by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, in Ogawa district, Nishimera Village, Miyazaki Prefecture, surveys on cargo volume, postal and home delivery services and an interview survey over the concerned people/organizations were conducted to analyze the feasibility of the proposed transportation system and required conditions. The main results are as follows: 1) the cargo volume is within the legal limit of light trucks, 2) both of the residents, the users and the concerned service companies/organizations evaluate the proposed system positively. And then, this paper identified 3) the issues to be agreed among the stakeholders concerning the contents/levels of the future practical consolidated service system, and 4) the necessity to strengthen the residential organization.