Initiatives for the FY2025 Demonstration Experiment for the Social Implementation of Automated Logistics Roads (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism): Verifying Operations at Logistics Hubs Using Landport Yokohama Sugita

Nomura Real Estate Development Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Daisaku Matsuo, hereinafter 'Nomura Real Estate'), IHI Corporation (Headquarters: Koto-ku, Tokyo; President: Hiroshi Ide, hereinafter 'IHI'), IHI Logistics & Machinery Corporation (Headquarters: Koto-ku, Tokyo; President: Motohiro Kawada, hereinafter 'IHI Logistics & Machinery'), Nakao Industry Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Arida-gun, Wakayama; President: Masahiro Nakao, hereinafter 'Nakao Industry'), Fuji Transport Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Nara, Nara; President: Hiroaki Matsuoka, hereinafter 'Fuji Transport'), and NX Research Institute, Inc. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Masahito Suzuki, hereinafter 'NX Research Institute') conducted a demonstration experiment (FY2025 adopted project) for the social implementation of the 'Automated Logistics Road' concept promoted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) from January 29th to 30th at 'Landport Yokohama Sugita' (Yokohama, Kanagawa), a facility jointly developed by Nomura Real Estate and IHI.

On the public demonstration day, approximately 70 members of the consortium for the implementation of automated logistics roads, as well as numerous members of the press, attended the tour. This experiment focused on the efficiency of unmanned cargo handling (Use Case 1) and coordination with truck arrival schedule information (Use Case 6) to verify the feasibility of automating transshipment at logistics hubs. We are pleased to announce the results, challenges, and future direction obtained from this experiment.

1. What is an Automated Logistics Road?

This is a general term for a new logistics infrastructure promoted by the MLIT called the 'Autoflow Road.' It aims to create dedicated logistics spaces within road infrastructure, utilizing unmanned, automated transport vehicles powered by clean energy to transport cargo 24 hours a day. Automated logistics roads were conceived to address structural issues in Japanese logistics, such as the worsening driver shortage, the trend toward smaller and more frequent shipments, rising fuel costs, and the need for CO2 emission reductions. The MLIT aims to begin operations by the mid-2030s in sections where implementation is possible through small-scale improvements (precursor routes), and is working toward social implementation through public-private partnerships, including demonstration experiments.