When Tokihiro Nakamura commenced his position as Prefectural Governor of Ehime in November 2010, one of his priorities was to increase tourism. The picturesque scenery of the islands of Setouchi and the web of bridges connecting them, in particular, the Shimanami Kaido, (one of three bridges between Honshu and Shikoku islands but the only one on which cyclists can use) provided a unique opportunity to revitalise tourism and simultaneously promote a healthy lifestyle for citizens with positive environmental outcomes.

Project objectives

• Foster friendships and health and well-being by encouraging citizens’ use of bicycles
• Increase the number of visitors to the region by attracting cyclists from both Japan and abroad
• Promote environmental awareness

The project has been divided into three stages and is being implemented in a strategic rollout.

Stage 1: Create a vibrant cycling environment

• Hold international cycling events on the Shimanami Kaido once every two years, restricting traffic on the highway for cycling use (a practice unique within Japan)
• Create a welcoming environment with rental cycles that can be dropped off at opposite ends of the trip, cycle oases, free Wi-Fi, etc.
• Train citizens to be cycle guides

Stage 2: Create incentives for citizen  engagement

• Create a cycling course within the prefecture and designated by blue lines painted on the roads
• Make the second Sunday of November Ehime Cycling Day, and hold cycling events simultaneously throughout the prefecture
• Hold outreach activities aimed at children, women, seniors, and families such as cycling trial sessions, bicycle safety workshops, etc.
• Improve user-friendliness for cyclists in coordination with public transport (cycle trains, buses that allow bicycles, etc.)
• Spread a “share the road” spirit, with the 1.5m Campaign (ensuring a safe distance between cars and bicycles) etc.
• Distribute free helmets to all prefectural high school students, and mandate their use (first initiative of this kind in Japan)

Stage 3: Develop Shikoku as a  cycling island

• Set up a 1,000 km circuit route of Shikoku and create road surface pictogram signs in coordination with the national government and the other prefectures of Shikoku (scheduled for completion by the end of 2019)
• Register cyclists from home and abroad who hope to do a circuit of Shikoku, and distribute official cycling jerseys and finishing certificates, as part of the year round Shikoku 1,000 km Circuit Challenge Project
• Encourage young people to cycle around Shikoku as a commemorative coming of age event and have them convey the appeal of Shikoku from a young person’s point of view, by carrying out Cycle Shikoku Youth Project
• Recruit hospitality supporters who offer discounts on food and lodging to cyclists doing a circuit of Shikoku

The lead agency for the project is the Ehime Prefecture Cycling Lifestyle Promotion Division.

A public-private partnership to promote the new cycling culture, called the Association for the Promotion of a New Ehime Cycling Culture was established in 2016. Along with this, the Foundation for the Promotion of a New Ehime Cycling Culture was set up in 2016 to solicit donations from domestic and overseas businesses, to help spread the new cycling culture and to fund international cycling tournaments. As the names suggest, the policies are developed in a system for all of Ehime.

Cycling Tracks centred around the Shimanami Kaido sea route:

• It was introduced on America’s CNN as one of the seven best cycling roads in the world. (2014)
• It was selected in the Lonely Planet guidebook’s Top 50 Most Attractive Cycling Routes in the World. (2016)
• The number of total participants in Cycling Shimanami 2018 was 7,215, with 701 overseas participants from 26 countries, which was a new record. This was one of the biggest international events in the country.
• The number of bicycle rentals in 2017 was approximately 150,000, which is three times more as in 2010.

Shimanami Kaido garners overseas and domestic attention among a wealth of tourist attractions as a one-of-a-kind initiative for its use of bicycles.

As well as promoting regional development, it is also promoting safe cycling with the establishment of rules to promote bicycle safety (2013).

Shimanami Kaido has been recognised globally and the number of domestic and overseas visitors continues to increase, but there is a need for a mechanism to spread this effect throughout Ehime Prefecture, and the whole of Shikoku.

Currently, efforts to implement Stage 3, Cycling Island Shikoku are being increased. It is hoped this will positively affect the revitalisation of the region by conveying the attractiveness of Shikoku as a cycling area, continue to create a welcoming environment, draw in even more cyclists from home and abroad and increasing the number of visitors, while strengthening cooperation with the national government, the other prefectures in Shikoku, and private businesses in the region.

http://www.clair.or.jp/e/bestpractice/docs/2018ehime_e_r.pdf