A Study on Highway Planning System in Japan through International Comparison

In recent years, serious concern has been expressed over the current decision making process of public project planning. This article summarized an international comparative study on highway planning procedures in major countries including Japan, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States. The study recognized “Information Disclosure” as the most important concept in planing process followed by “Public Involvement” and “Project Evaluation”. In Japan, public authorities have strong tendency to secure employment opportunity for workers in the construction industry. There is little incentive for them to introduce the above three concepts in practice as they will require time, cost and manpower.