Hinomaru a driving force for change in taxi industry

Hinomaru Kotsu Co Ltd is a leading taxi operator in Japan, now branching out to the world. It owns more than 600 vehicles, operating out of four offices and has over 2,000 employees. The company’s motto is “Be open-minded and always stay farsighted.”

Living up to this motto, Hinomaru is implementing major changes. It recently started hiring foreign drivers, leading the industry in diversity recruitment. It has instituted "Tokyo Sightseeing Taxi" program, a pioneering employee support and paid training program for foreign workers.

Furthermore, Hinomaru has just declared a diversity manifesto and said the company will progress with instruction courses for employees about LGBT issues as well as foreign drivers. Hinomaru will also implement a 3-day work week for drivers.

In technology, Hinomaru has partnered with Japanese robotics maker ZMP Inc, as part of its plans to launch self-driving taxis in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

As part of its “No Safety Without A Healthy Work Environment” policy, the company has started a program — the first in the taxi industry — to help its employees quit smoking with the aid of Nicolette gum and lozenges. Convenience store chain Lawson is also cooperating with Hinomaru's health program, offering low-carbohydrate bento (boxed lunches) and plans to expand it to all employees to address metabolic problems. Hitomaru has even co-developed “drive lens” glasses with one of the biggest eyeglass companies, Jins Lens, to prevent drivers who are exposed to ultra-violet rays all day, from getting cataracts and keratitis.

Driving these changes is Hinomaru President Kazutaka Tomita. He’s a comparatively young, third-generation president of the company who has a modern, global mindset.

Japan Today writer Mai Shoji visits Tomita at his Tokyo office to hear more about his vision for the future of the taxi business in Japan.

You just started to open your doors to foreign drivers. How many of them are there now?

So far there are 24 foreign drivers including trainees. They come from 12 countries such as Egypt, Poland, Austria, Brazil, China, South Korea, India and the Philippines. We sponsor some of them for a visa, but the government has become so strict that it’s quite difficult for foreigners to obtain a visa to work as a taxi driver. Our recent trend is to hire foreigners who are married to Japanese citizens, those with permanent resident status or who are fixed domicile residents.

"So far we are getting very good responses from customers (about our foreign drivers). Some say their hospitality is more proper than a Japanese."

What are the procedures for foreigners to become a driver?

You need to speak Japanese, live in Japan, and have a driver’s license. Japanese is a necessity because the test for the Ordinary Vehicle Class 2 Driver’s License, which you must pass to work as a taxi driver, is in Japanese. You have to physically reside in Japan, because in order to take this second degree test, you need to wait three years after passing the Class 1 Driver’s License. Then you receive two months of training with us before making your debut as a driver.

Does the company pay for the training costs?

Yes. We also pay the training fee for all drivers to pass the Tokyo Guide certification as part of the Tokyo Sightseeing Taxi program. This is a certification unique to the taxi industry and you can get the certification after attending a training program for a day, if you have already acquired the Tokyo Sightseeing Taxi Driver Certificate. We have about 100 certified drivers and are encouraging all drivers to pass the city guide test managed by the Tokyo Convention and Visitors Bureau under our sponsorship. I think it’s necessary, especially for foreign drivers.

In some countries, you often see taxi drivers who are perhaps immigrants. It’s a surprise that you’ve just started using foreign drivers in Japan. What are the customers’ reaction to foreign drivers here?

So far we are getting very good responses from customers. Some say their hospitality is more proper than a Japanese.

What’s your stance on immigration, especially in the transport industry?

I think we need to carefully discuss this issue, as do our competitors. However, I personally think that as long as immigrants have the will to work and study, and seem to have pleasant personalities, we should employ them more and more. Japan is facing a labor shortage. The average age for taxi drivers is 60, while for trucks and buses, it is between 40 and 50. We need to focus on diversity.

What else are you working on in response to Japan’s declining birthrate and aging population?

We support worker’s health by tie-ups with with various companies. We are carrying substantiative experiments in co-development with ZMP, a Japanese robotics maker, to compensate for the lack of labor supply by using autonomous driving technology.

"I think 2020 will be a milestone for Japan and a suitable occasion for easing regulations, especially for self-driving taxis." Image: Japan Today

What is your view of self-driving taxis.

I definitely agree with the idea of self-driving taxis because the labor shortage makes it imperative. We had a press conference with ZMP last June. We’re aiming for a “level-4” (high-automation level in which the car can operate without human input or oversight but only under select conditions defined by factors such as road type or geographic area). But self-driving vehicles would run between selected destinations, for example, from Tokyo Station to Odaiba, like a shuttle bus, with exclusive streets and dedicated traffic signals. It is said that level 5 (driverless cars that can operate on any road and in any conditions a human driver could negotiate) will take another 15 years to put into practice.

I think 2020 will be a milestone for Japan and a suitable occasion for easing regulations, especially for self-driving taxis. How this will be legally regulated is still being discussed, but the Olympics will be a perfect opportunity to promote Japanese technology. I think it’s important that the taxi industry manages self-driving taxis otherwise existing drivers will lose their jobs. Drivers come from all walks of life. Some started a business and failed and have become taxi drivers, so it’s our responsibility to provide jobs for them. That’s why in order to protect employment, self-driving taxis must be controlled. For example, not running them during the day would be one way. It’s important that the taxi industry keeps the balance of supply and demand.

Is “ainori” or ride-sharing becoming popular in Japan?

Not so much yet, but I believe ride-sharing can be the answer especially in times of huge demand like the 2019 Rugby World Cup, 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, and natural disasters. Inbound tourism will increase even more within the next few years. Tourists in London increased after the Olympics, so we have to be ready for that. Hotel and ryokan industries are already competing with Airbnb, so I say why not. There are a lot of vacant taxis running on any weekday. But still, people complain that there are no taxis on a rainy day, or during the year-end season. A ride-sharing system will help in times like this.

Speaking of employment, is there any possibility that existing drivers could lose jobs if you hire more foreign drivers?

That would definitely not be a problem. In the next decade, there will be a big driver shortage because the current drivers are from the postwar baby-boom generation. About 35% of our drivers are in their 70s. Wages in other Asian countries are rising, so we have to start hiring as many drivers as we can now or they’ll look the other way. I also want to have more women drivers. As an industry percentage, women drivers total only 1%; Hinomaru has 80 women drivers which account for 5% of the total. I think women drivers brighten up a car and they can rejuvenate the industry. Other companies think they have enough drivers, but they’re wrong. In this business, I believe in trial and error. If one idea doesn’t work, then I’ll think of another idea but we have to try. Fortunately we are receiving great responses to foreign drivers.

"Changes are already starting around us (in various industries). It’s nonsense to believe that only the taxi industry can maintain the status-quo."

Well-established companies in Japan don’t necessarily like changes. But you are one of the younger presidents in a big corporation. Did you get negative reactions toward implementing new ideas?

I think if I were a president in my 60s, I probably wouldn’t come up with such ideas. I hope to lead the company for another 20 or 30 years and I’m driven by a sense of risk. I need to make my employees happy and so even though many say my ideas are premature, or ask me why I am doing something on my own, someone has to start somewhere or nothing ever gets started. Changes are already starting around us (in various industries). It’s nonsense to believe that only the taxi industry can maintain the status-quo.

Good driving skills are important, but I believe communication is just as important. Do you have an English program for all drivers?

Yes, we have a native teacher come in every week. The Japanese education system is faulty. We are taught English for six years and yet, we can’t speak it very well. It’s obvious that the education system is not catching up with globalisation. Taxi drivers get to communicate with people from all over the world. The next generation will be working with people from many different countries and it’s such a shame that they can’t speak English even if they have been studying the language for 10 years.

I see many box wagon-type taxis and hear most taxis will be that type in the future.

Yes, they are called Japan Taxis. But some foreign visitors don’t like them because they feel that they are for cargo. So there is a movement to keep the sedan type and we are ordering black sedan taxis to meet those customers’ preferences.

In the past, vending machines provided free drinks during natural disasters. Do you have plans to discount or possibly provide free rides during such times?

We can’t provide free rides but I strongly think the sector operation regulation should be deactivated at such times. Many people took taxis home after 3.11 even for very long distances because trains were not running. For example, a customer took a taxi from Tokyo to Chiba. After dropping off the customer, the driver was not able to pick up customers in Chiba due to the sector regulation. So even though there were so many people in need of taxis, and taxis were running empty, drivers could not take them home. I have been speaking out for a long time to ease this regulation in times of disasters.

Do you ride in taxis and if so, do you get recognized by drivers?

Yes. I ride in taxis all the time and sometimes drivers under our direct management recognize me. I’m told not to get in them during the performance monitoring periods twice a year.

What do you check first when you get in a taxi?

How the driver greets me. If the driver opens the door and I get in without so much as a greeting, I become suspicious from that moment. And I’m usually right about the suspicion. Drivers who don’t start by saying hello are usually the ones who make mistakes. I try to intensively teach all employees that greeting a passenger is the most important thing, but some veteran drivers don’t make an effort. That’s the one area where self-driving taxis can’t compete — the spirit of service. It’s like staying at a pricey luxury hotel and you get bad service; you would be angry.

For more information on Hinomaru, visit https://hinomaru.tokyo. If you would like to become a driver for the "Tokyo Sightseeing Taxi" program, click here.