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I am an editor of JAF Mate, a monthly publication of the JAPAN AUTOMOBILE FEDERATION (JAF). Today I would like to introduce what general drivers and users think of ITS, based on the opinions and requests from our readers and the results of the customer survey we often carry out in JAF Mate. I hope my lecture will be of some help to your future research and development.
We often hear the expression "voices of the users." This expression is frequently used in contrast to the developer side or the intention and opinions of people who provide some kind of services, but do voices of the users really exist? As we all know well, 'voices of the users' means collections of many different opinions, thus there is no 'voice of a user' summed up into one user's voice. Again, 'voices of the users' is a collection of numerous opinions and is not a definite opinion that can be defined as a certain intention and opinion for the developers or providers. Furthermore, characteristic of the 'voices of the users' is that they are so personal, subjective, and egocentric that maybe we can call them "selfish voices." These selfish voices hardly ever reflect the issues the developers or providers face, technical issues, or even the issues or circumstances based on the rules of society. Voices of the users usually request the developer or provider to provide the users' selfishness, or what the users want. When some product is going to be developed, it is said that the developer should consider the voices of the users; however, this is not so easy to do. Still, it is also true that voices of the users include what the users honestly think or feel. I believe that how well you extract or dig up those honest opinions is a matter of importance not only for ITS but for the provision of any service. As I listen to our readers, I often think that the voices of the users are like diamonds in the rough.
When we consider what kind of ITS would be convenient and beneficial for users based on these voices, it can safely be said that the ITS developed only by experts with their personal experiences and theory does not reach that goal, but ITS that embraces the ideals of many users is exactly what we are considering here.
ASV (Advanced Safety Vehicle) is definitely one of the main concepts of ITS, but not many people know much about ASV yet. If some product or service is not known by the users, that may mean that the users are not interested in it. If that is the case, we will not get many opinions or requests from the users. Then the developers or providers naturally tend to produce products or services from only their own point of view. This situation could fall into a vicious cycle. Taking a look at the current ITS situation, although we have some growing services such as VICS and ETC, I am afraid to say that there still are some services that could fall into this vicious cycle. One of the measures to stay out of it is to conduct promotional activities. I believe that the JAF MATE Company needs to actively participate in this kind of activity. I also believe we should make an intensive appeal for the necessity of the services the users are not well aware of yet in an easy-to-understand manner through the media. If the circumstances change and things fall into a virtuous cycle, those services can be disseminated widely. As you may remember, ETC spread quickly once it had been introduced in ads and articles of various media and attracted public attention. It is important for users to obtain information through the media.
According to one of the questionnaires about the penetration rate of ETC we had two years ago, the national average penetration rate of vehicular devices was about 20%. The regions with a high penetration rate included the Tokyo metropolitan area, Kansai area, Aichi prefecture, and urban expressway areas. This result shows that the penetration rate of ETC gets higher in areas where the people tend to use expressways more often. When asked why they don't have an ETC, many people answered that they don't need to use one very often or at all. However, other than these answers, many people also answered that the prices were just too high. It is reflected in the survey results that the users place great importance on the prices. Soon after some services started around 2005 such as late night discount, commuter discount, and mileage discount services, which are now very popular, the penetration rate of ETC began to grow even more. It is obvious that some discount services are also necessary for ITS.
It seems that people's expectations of ASV (Advanced Safety Vehicle) are high. Some ASV products have already been in the market, but when asked if they have driven an ASV or if they are interested in an ASV, most people answered they were interested but had never driven one. This survey result clearly shows that even though some breakthrough products have been developed and produced, the users have not yet heard about these excellent products. One of the more important concepts of ASV is to allow users to see things, which they could not see before, using vehicle-to-vehicle and road-to-vehicle communication. However, from the users' standpoint, they will first ask what the difference between the system and the corner mirror is. Everybody knows what the corner mirror is, and the corner mirrors are easy to use for anyone and thus their reliability is high. I think we should try to include these feelings of security, simplicity of use, and understandability for users in products using the vehicle-to-vehicle and road-to-vehicle communication system, and explain these points to the users. Otherwise, this system may not become more common than corner mirrors, no matter how sophisticated the system is.
What the users emphasize is not what they can do with the functions a technology provides, but on what services they can get. For example, even if you develop some system that allows users to perform some useful task in a vehicle, if what you can do with the system is exactly the same as what you can do with a cell-phone or PC outside a car, more than likely no one will be interested. How about providing some discount service in a nearby restaurant in the rest area on an expressway only when the traffic gets heavy? Or how about charging a driver the expressway tolls from interchange A to C, even if the driver once gets off at smart interchange B and gets on the expressway from smart interchange B again? These services could reduce the number of vehicles, which are moving during a traffic jam and could be measures to decongest traffic. How about providing discount movies in a traffic jam by using a wireless system installed in each rest area? In addition, how about bringing the price down if the driver has an ETC? The users will probably express a strong interest in ITS technologies if we can provide such combined services utilizing ITS vehicular devices. I think it will be difficult to get the users interested in our technologies only by upgrading the existing ETC vehicular devices.
One of the biggest problems in the current automotive industry is that young people are losing interest in cars. They say they drive a car, but are not interested in cars. Young people used to like cars and cars used to be one of the things that young people really wanted. Contemporary young people show their interest in other fields such as IT, PC, networks, and mobile phones. I think ITS can play an important role in getting young people interested in cars again. What the users are currently seeking is not what they can do with the application of cutting edge technology. I believe they are looking for ITS technologies that have been developed and produced for the purpose of benefitting the users.
When asked if they like life with a car, more than 90% of the people said "Yes." I think cars are indispensable in our daily lives, and I hope ITS can make it even more attractive because the service it provides is a matter of importance.
Lastly, I would like to ask you to please continue to carry out your technological research and development.