An account of the situation which brought about the privatization of JNR in 1987, the processes of privatization, break-up and deregulation, and the new private railway companies. This account is seen in the context of the Japanese transport system as a whole, and takes into account the differing requirements of urban and rural areas.

First published in 1998, this title is part of the Bloomsbury Academic Collections series.

Tatsujiro Ishikawa, Chairman of the Institute of Transport Statistics, Japan.