5. Tokyo as the world’s safest, most secure, most convenient and most comfortable city

Next, I will speak about our measures to ensure safety and security for Tokyo residents. It has been almost ten years since the Great East Japan Earthquake struck us, taking many precious lives and leaving scars of devastation in our country in various forms. A few days ago, we again experienced a strong earthquake centering in the Tohoku region, which was believed to be an aftershock of the 2011 quake. I would like to express my heartfelt sympathy to those affected by it. We must not let memories of past earthquakes fade. Large-scale disasters, including storms and floods, can happen anytime in Tokyo. From the perspective of preparing ourselves against a natural disaster complicated by the coronavirus, we will devote all our energy to strengthening our measures against disasters.

Drawing up a new disaster preparedness plan

To be fully prepared against disasters requires the understanding and support of each and every resident. The Tokyo Disaster Preparedness Plan, an easy-to-understand compilation of our disaster response from the residents’ perspective, which releases a report annually on the progress of these measures, will be revised at the end of the next month. We will strengthen measures in preparation for natural disasters complicated by infectious disease. For example, we will secure new evacuation sites, including hotels and large commercial facilities, to spread out evacuees, and enhance stockpiles of goods effective in preventing the spread of infection. In addition, while tackling current challenges, such as upgrading our disaster response through digital transformation, we will further evolve our disaster management projects by advancing self-support, mutual support, and public support.

Creating towns that do not collapse or burn

The Strategy to Accelerate Removal of Utility Poles was recently released to create towns that do not collapse. It contains seven strategies aimed at further enhancing our preparedness against earthquakes and typhoons by overcoming all kinds of challenges hindering our efforts to remove utility poles. We will accelerate efforts to remove utility poles across Tokyo by integrally pushing forward initiatives, including doubling the annual work done on utility pole removal on metropolitan and port access roads, strengthening support for municipal roads, and promoting the removal of utility poles in private housing land developments.

In the revised draft of the seismic retrofitting promotion plan, we have included measures such as promoting the removal of decrepit detached homes and providing effective support to condominiums via utilization of the reporting system on the management situation of condos. We will strive for the thorough seismic resistance of buildings used for purposes that are public in nature, including hospitals and schools, and large-scale buildings used by the public, by calling more strongly on their owners.

Regarding designated routes for improvement, which protect towns from the spread of fire, the first such route, the Sekihara-Umeda section of Auxiliary Route 136 in Adachi-ku, will open next month. We will continue to steadily build other designated routes for improvement through the new construction programs of the Urban Development Plan for Disaster Resistance. Furthermore, by continuing to provide extensive support for the Special Development Zones to Advance Fire Resistance (Fireproof Zones), such as provision of subsidies for the rebuilding and elimination of buildings, and reduction or exemption of fixed assets and city planning taxes, and by also expanding support to resolve the problem of land with no road access, we will advance the building of communities where fire does not spread.

Protecting lives from intensifying storms and floods

We will also solidify our preparedness against storms and floods, which have been intensifying in recent years. Last year, we saw a record number of heavy rain disasters across the nation. The importance of disseminating information to urge people to promptly evacuate was widely recognized once again. Currently, we are gradually expanding the installation of river-level monitoring cameras. In the next fiscal year, our Flood Control Integrated Information System will be revamped, and a new function to provide information on the river situation in real time will be added. The new Tokyo Storm Surge Disaster Prevention Information System will also come into operation. One of its services, which allows people to check the risks of storm surge at exact locations, will be launched by the end of this fiscal year. We will promptly build systems that can convey disaster management information to Tokyo residents in an easy-to-understand manner.

In the next fiscal year, we will begin working on the regulating reservoir projects at the upstream area of the Zenpukuji River and Johoku-Chuo Park (second phase). Including these efforts, we will continue to steadily advance work to raise capacity by about 1.5 million cubic meters by FY 2030.

For low-lying areas in east Tokyo, such as the five Koto-district wards, we will identify all options available to protect the residents’ lives from floods, such as advancing the construction of high ground and using elevated roads for vertical evacuation, and study them together with the national government and relevant local governments. In addition, we will formulate the next Coastal Protection Facilities Development Plan to advance measures for quake resistance and waterproofing of seawalls and floodgates, while studying the utilization of latest technologies, in order to further strengthen our disaster management capacities.

Strengthening the foundation of public enterprises that support our safe, secure and comfortable living

We will also work to strengthen the foundation of public enterprises that support our safe, secure and comfortable living.

For our waterworks business, we will rebuild a resilient water supply system by extending facility life spans through preventive maintenance and management, and enhance customer service through utilization of leading technologies including smart meters. As for our sewerage business, taking into consideration heavy rains which have been increasing in severity in recent years, we will strengthen measures against inundation, and further advance technological development for the operation of AI-assisted rainwater pumps. In addition, in the future, we will introduce a comprehensive outsourcing system that incorporates the know-how and ingenuity of the private sector for the operation of the Ochiai and Kiyose Water Reclamation Centers. Next month, we will formulate new five-year management plans for the Bureau of Waterworks and Bureau of Sewerage for systematic and effective advancement of business. The Bureau of Transportation, which is expected to continue to experience financial difficulties due to COVID-19, will also draw up its next management plan in the next fiscal year from the standpoint of always serving its roles and responsibility as Toei Transportation.

The Central Wholesale Market, the foundation of the distribution of fresh foods, also must be revitalized. With a vision of the wholesale market in the future, last month, we released a draft of management guidelines which will serve as a compass for the market’s management. These guidelines will help the market adjust to digitalization, which is progressing at an accelerated pace, and changes in the distribution system. While also taking into the consideration the views of market stakeholders and the residents of Tokyo, we will finalize the guidelines by the end of this fiscal year, and advance the strategic management of the market.