Dissemination of ETC in Japan and Its Ripple Effects

摘要

ETC in Japan has been developed with a view to creation of new markets since its planning stage with a design based on common specifications. As a result, it has grown to a large market with wide range of businesses, where many operators from various business fields are participating, and is successful in creating social benefits and bringing significant economic effects. This paper estimated the sum of economic ripple effects in markets for on-board equipment, IC card and infrastructure which were newly created by introduction of ETC, as well as analyzed features of ETC in Japan and primary factors of its success. Further, it summarized the creation of social effects from introduction of ETC such as development of Smart Interchange (Smart IC) and implementation of flexible pricing.