The news program "News Audrey Japan's Infrastructure is in Big Trouble SP" (Nippon TV, Kanto local), hosted by the comedy duo "Audrey", will be broadcast from 3:55 pm on May 6th. This time, Masayasu Wakabayashi will report on the scene of the road collapse accident that occurred in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture in January 2025.
The road collapse in Yashio City left a huge cavity over 10 meters deep beneath the ground, and people in 12 surrounding cities and towns, and approximately 1.2 million people, were asked to restrict their sewage use.
Wakabayashi said, "When I saw a hole like this on the news, I thought it was CG," and when he spoke to local residents, they said, "We can't even get our cars out, and we don't know where the hole will be, so we're afraid to go outside," and "It was a route elementary school children took to school." One shop owner spoke of the hardships he was facing, saying that the number of customers had dropped dramatically. Wakabayashi said, "This isn't just a problem for one area. It means that 'it could happen in our town tomorrow,'" and he began to see it as something that affected him personally.
Next, Wakabayashi visited Saitama Governor Ohno Motohiro. He revealed the enormous cost of infrastructure restoration, saying, "Just creating an 80-meter detour would cost about 9 billion yen." He went on to say, "We don't have enough budgets and enough personnel to manage all of the infrastructure. Local governments are reaching their limits in both finances and manpower."
Governor Ohno continued, "It is no longer realistic to restore everything to the way it was. From now on, we must discuss 'selection and concentration,' in other words, narrowing down the 'towns that will use the facilities.'" He went on to delve into the future vision for infrastructure and cities.
Currently, it is said that about 40% of the roads and about 25% of the tunnels in the country are more than 50 years old. However, financial resources are limited and the workforce is aging. We are entering an era where it is no longer possible to "repair everything." The renewal rate of Japan's sewer pipes is only about 0.5% per year, and the number of places where roads, waterworks, bridges, etc. are "decrepit even in places you can't see" is increasing.
◇Audrey's comment
Wakabayashi: I had the misconception that Japan is a country of infrastructure. But when I went to the site, I realized that life there is based on a very precarious balance.
Toshiaki Kasuga: When I first saw the news, it didn't seem like it was happening to me... But after hearing the story, I suddenly became scared. Sewer pipes, roads, and other things you can't see...
Wakabayashi-san: What's more, it's too late to fix things after they've been damaged. Preventing them takes time and money. But if we don't do it, the city will die.
Kasuga: I feel like tightening my purse strings... but I don't want the road in my neighborhood to collapse. So I guess I'll just pay it.
Wakabayashi: If we don't start thinking about that now, the whole of Japan will be in trouble.
