Ministry of Transport - Unyusho

A national administrative agency established by the Ministry of Transport Establishment Act. The Ministry of Railways, established in 1920 (Taisho 9), was reorganized as the Ministry of Transport and Communications in 1943 (Showa 18), and then became independent as the Ministry of Transport in May 1945. In January 2001 (Heisei 13), as part of the reorganization of central government ministries and agencies, it was integrated into the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism along with the Ministry of Construction, the National Land Agency, and the Hokkaido Regional Development Agency.

The Ministry of Transport's responsibilities have changed slightly, but they range from administration directly or indirectly related to transportation, the movement of people and goods on water, land, sea, and air (administration of maritime transport, land transport, aviation, ports, seafarers, ships, railways, automobiles, tourism, etc.), to meteorological operations by the external bureau, the Japan Meteorological Agency, and the maintenance of maritime safety and security by the Japan Coast Guard, and as a result, it has become a large-scale administrative organization. In other words, it was composed of seven internal bureaus, the Minister's Secretariat and the Transport Policy Bureau, the Railway Bureau, the Road Traffic Bureau, the Maritime Traffic Bureau, the Maritime Technical Safety Bureau, the Port and Harbor Bureau, and the Civil Aviation Bureau, as well as regional branch bureaus such as the Regional Transport Bureau, the Port and Harbor Construction Bureau, the Regional Civil Aviation Bureau, and the Air Traffic Control Department, councils such as the Transport Council, facilities and organizations such as the Ship Technical Research Institute, the Port and Harbor Technical Research Institute, the Civil Aviation College, and the Transport Training Institute, and four external bureaus, the Japan Meteorological Agency, the Seafarers' Labor Commission, the Japan Coast Guard, and the Marine Accident Tribunal. Of these, the most important was transportation administration. Considering the public nature of transportation and transport, which is essential to people's lives and industrial activity, the significance of transportation administration was in its comprehensive regulation, supervision, adjustment and guidance from the perspective of safety, reliability and convenience over the means, methods and location of transportation. However, since the period of high economic growth, transportation administration has tended to emphasize convenience over safety and reliability, and convenience for industrial activity over people's lives, and its significance was called into question in the wake of various issues surrounding the long-term debt of the former Japanese National Railways, issues regarding the nature of public transportation means and fares, measures to combat automobile accidents, and pollution issues such as noise and air pollution.

Since 2001, the Ministry has been restructured as follows. As for the internal bureaus, the functions of the Minister's Secretariat were transferred to the Minister's Secretariat and Deputy Director General for Policy of the new Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, the Transport Policy Bureau to the Minister's Secretariat, Policy Bureau and Deputy Director General for Policy of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, the Maritime Traffic Bureau and the Maritime Technology and Safety Bureau to the Maritime Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and the Railway Bureau, Road Transport Bureau, Port and Harbor Bureau and Civil Aviation Bureau to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. As for facilities and organizations, the Port and Harbor Research Institute (now the National Institute of Maritime, Port and Aviation Technology) and the Civil Aviation College were transferred as facilities and organizations of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, respectively, but most of them were made into independent administrative institutions in April 2001. As for the Transport Training Institute, it was merged with the Construction College of the Ministry of Construction and reorganized as the College of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and the Policy Research Institute for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, which are facilities and organizations of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Regarding councils, the Transport Council was taken over as is by the Transport Council of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, but the Transport Policy Council and Transport Technology Council were taken over by the Transport Policy Council of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The four external bureaus were taken over as external bureaus of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Regarding the regional branch bureaus, the Port and Harbor Construction Bureau was reorganized along with the Regional Construction Bureaus of the Ministry of Construction into the Regional Development Bureaus of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and the Regional Transport Bureaus, Regional Aviation Bureaus and Air Traffic Control Department were taken over as the Regional Branch bureaus of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, the Regional Transport Bureaus, Regional Aviation Bureaus and Air Traffic Control Departments.

[Toshiro Fuka and Kengo Yamada]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

運輸省設置法によって設置された国の行政機関。1920年（大正9）設置の鉄道省が、1943年（昭和18）運輸通信省に改組され、さらに1945年5月に運輸省として独立した。2001年（平成13）1月には中央省庁再編により、建設省、国土庁、北海道開発庁とともに、国土交通省に統合された。

　運輸省の所掌事務は、若干の変遷があったが、水・陸・海・空における人や物の移動を意味する交通・運輸に直接間接にかかわる行政（海運、陸運、航空、港湾、船員、船舶、鉄道、自動車および観光などの行政）から、外局である気象庁によって行われる気象業務や、海上保安庁によって行われる海上の安全および治安の維持に至るまで、多岐にわたっており、それに伴って大規模な行政組織になっていた。すなわち、内部部局として大臣官房と運輸政策局・鉄道局・自動車交通局・海上交通局・海上技術安全局・港湾局・航空局の七つの局、および各地方の地方運輸局・港湾建設局・地方航空局・航空交通管制部などの地方支分部局、運輸審議会に代表される審議会等、船舶技術研究所・港湾技術研究所・航空大学校・運輸研修所などといった施設等機関、気象庁・船員労働委員会・海上保安庁・海難審判所の四つの外局から構成されていた。これらのうち、もっとも重要なものは運輸行政であった。運輸行政は、国民生活や産業活動に必要不可欠な交通・運輸の公共性にかんがみ、その手段や方法および配置など全般にわたって、安全性、確実性、利便性などの観点から総合的な規制や監督および調整や指導を行うところに意義があった。もっとも、高度成長期以降の運輸行政は、安全性・確実性よりも利便性、国民生活よりも産業活動の利便性を重視する傾向にあり、旧国鉄の長期債務をめぐる諸問題、公共交通輸送手段のあり方と運賃問題、自動車事故対策、騒音・大気汚染対策などの公害問題でその意義が問われていた。

　2001年以降、同省の組織は次のように再編された。内部部局に関しては、大臣官房の有する機能が、新省庁の国土交通省の大臣官房および政策統括官に、運輸政策局については、国土交通省の大臣官房、総合政策局および政策統括官に、海上交通局および海上技術安全局は国土交通省の海事局に、鉄道局・自動車交通局・港湾局・航空局は、国土交通省の鉄道局・自動車交通局・港湾局・航空局に引き継がれることとなった。施設等機関に関しては、港湾技術研究所（現、海上・港湾・航空技術研究所）・航空大学校等はそのまま国土交通省の施設等機関としてそれぞれ引き継がれたが、2001年4月にそれらの大部分は独立行政法人化された。運輸研修所については、建設省の建設大学校と統合され、国土交通省の施設等機関である国土交通大学校および国土交通政策研究所として再編された。審議会等に関しては、運輸審議会は、国土交通省運輸審議会にそのまま引き継がれたが、運輸政策審議会・運輸技術審議会などは、国土交通省の交通政策審議会に引き継がれることとなった。四つの外局は、国土交通省の外局としてそれぞれ引き継がれた。地方支分部局に関しては、港湾建設局は建設省の地方建設局とともに、国土交通省の地方整備局に再編され、地方運輸局・地方航空局・航空交通管制部は、国土交通省の地方支分部局である地方運輸局・地方航空局・航空交通管制部として引き継がれることになった。

［福家俊朗・山田健吾］

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