Will Smart will co-host the Regional Transport DX Forum 2026 with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Local governments, transport operators and private companies discussed challenges facing regional transportation and the latest developments in digital transformation, while exploring future opportunities for collaboration.
An overview of the Regional Transport DX Forum 2026 has been announced. The event will be held on 14 October 2026, Wednesday, with Will Smart as the organizer and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism as co-organizer. The event will be held both at a physical venue and online, and was attended by many stakeholders in regional transportation, including local governments, transport operators and related companies.
The event was presented against a backdrop of challenges in regions facing population decline and demographic aging, including driver shortages, declining ridership and rising operating costs. The organizers explained that digital technology is expected to improve the efficiency and convenience of transport services. Because challenges differ from region to region, there was a need for a forum where the public and private sectors could work together and share their knowledge.
The forum featured discussions on achieving sustainable transport services through DX and the use of data. In the keynote address, Hoshi Akihiko (星 明彦) introduced COMmmmONS, a transport operations platform. Initiatives involving bus operations, data standardization and the use of transport resources were also presented, along with a presentation introducing STS as an advanced example and initiatives to advance DX in regional railways.
In Part 2, participants were given a demonstration of a core business platform compliant with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's standard specifications for bus operations, followed by group work on barriers to DX and the future outlook. A panel discussion provided an exchange of views on challenges including labor shortages, data utilization and standardization, as well as potential solutions. Participants shared the challenges and future direction for promoting DX in regional transportation.