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Privatization of the Japan Highway Public Corporation: Focusing on Organizational Structure Change

Abstract In October 2005, the Japan Highway Public Corporation was privatized and separated into three expressway companies. Three other public corporations were privatized as well: the Metropolitan Expressway Public Corporation, the Hanshin Expressway Public Corporation and the Honshu‐Shikoku Bridge Authority. The main purpose of this study is to overview the privatization policy taken by the government and to assess the preliminary organizational reforms. We will focus especially on policy issues such as horizontal separation, vertical (management‐holding) separation and regulatory changes, comparing the before‐privatization and after‐privatization periods of the Japan Highway Public Corporation. Evaluations will be based on empirical investigation and theory, as well as on lessons learned from the privatization of the Japan National Railway. † The previous version of this paper was presented at the 46th Congress for the European Regional Science Association, held at the University of Thessaly, 30 August–3 September 2006.