2025.10.02

From Hiroshima to Japan: Mazda Addresses Rural Challenges with Mutual Support Transportation

Imagine living alone as a senior citizen, with no car to get you around and limited access to public transport. When you consider the effect this could have on your life, it's hard not to feel concerned. But this isn’t a distant scenario, it’s something that you or your family could be facing in the very near future.

To address these issues, Mazda is working with local communities to find solutions to daily transportation challenges. When you need to get around but can no longer drive, what are your options? Read on to find out how Mazda is answering this question.

Becoming a trusted presence in the community: A new form of mobility
The three-way collaborative system behind Mutual Support Transportation
Transporting people to connect smiles
Challenges that emerged in practice
At the forefront, leading the way

Becoming a trusted presence in the community: A new form of mobility

To tackle this challenge, Mazda joined forces with the people of Kawanishi district in Miyoshi City, Hiroshima. In this peaceful rural village, around half of the 1,000 residents are elderly.

Public transport is limited with only two buses in each direction on public holidays. In a village like this, where the population is declining, life without a car is almost unimaginable. 85-year-old Tsuneo Shimamoto, who lives in Kawanishi, shares his experience.

Shimamoto:

I drove for around 56, 57 years. But I was worried about having an accident and injuring someone. So, five years ago, I handed in my license. But then there was no way for me to get around, and it became harder to go to the supermarket and clinic.

Shimamoto lives alone in Kawanishi. He shares how his mobility was affected after returning his driver's license.

Shimamoto is not alone. There are many elderly residents who consider returning their licenses, but don't want to lose their independence. This led to the creation of a new transportation system: "Mutual Support Transportation."

Mutual Support Transportation is a new form of mobility operated jointly by the local community, government, and Mazda. It started in 2018 as a transportation support service for non-drivers and senior citizens, and has been running as a pilot program in the Kawanishi district. So how does it work?

The three-way collaborative system behind Mutual Support Transportation

First, users make a reservation by phone or app. Then the local neighborhood association arranges drivers. Drivers are local residents who receive a 1,000 yen stipend per ride. Mazda supports the digital infrastructure with cloud-based software, and provides CX-5s equipped with safety technology as the vehicles.

Currently, about 15 to 20 locals use the service every month. While destinations are limited to locations within Kawanishi, it has become a trusted part of community life for elderly residents.

Shimamoto is among those users. We accompanied him on his trip to the supermarket, three kilometers from his home.

Tsuneo Shimamoto depends on the support of his son and daughter-in-law for most things, but uses this service once a month to get to the clinic and do his shopping.

When we asked Shimamoto what he thought of the service, he replied, “I couldn’t do my shopping without a car, and I don't want to bother my neighbors for help. This service is really my only option.”

His response shows just how valuable this service is. Even when you have family support, they're not always close at hand, and it's never easy to ask your neighbors for help. Community services like Mutual Support Transportation give peace of mind not only to the users, but to children with elderly parents living alone.

Transporting people to connect smiles

Mutual Support Transportation began as a way to support the mobility challenges of senior citizens. Yet Chihiro Kodama, one of the operation members and Secretary-General of the Kawanishi Community Association Federation, sees how this service has become more than just transport—it's a place where community connections are formed.

Kodama:

We're often giving a ride to more than one person at a time. When people share a ride they usually end up chatting. It might be just small talk, but seeing them chat away happily to one another makes me realize that we’re not just providing a way to get around. We’re providing a sense of joy in the community.

Chihiro Kodama serves as both Kawanishi Community Center Director and Secretary-General of the Kawanishi Community Association Federation.

Kodama always greets users with a smile and treats everyone with respect and kindness.

The drive takes longer when sharing a ride. But nobody’s complaining: "Oh, I’ve never been this way before!” and the happy conversation continues.

Shinichiro Yoshida from Mazda's Development Strategy Planning Department has been part of this project from the beginning. Working closely with the community to develop the service has taught him something new about the value of mobility.

Yoshida (Mazda):

Of course, people are happy about the convenience of the system, but we've discovered that the car is more than just part of the journey, it’s a place to connect with the community. It’s making connections and enriching people’s lives. And that’s something that is incredibly rewarding for all of us on the team, too.

Shinichiro Yoshida, Development Strategy Planning Department, R&D Strategy Planning Division. His desire to create a system that can support the community long-term drives his work.

Challenges that emerged in practice

However, as the pilot program develops, new challenges have emerged. With an aging community, there’s a shortage of people willing to take on the role of driver. Many are capable but not confident in their ability to drive safely, especially with the responsibility of passengers.

To address these challenges, the Tateshina Meeting* project, launched by Mazda, automotive industry companies and related organizations, created an initiative to support senior drivers in staying safe on the road and helping them feel confident about keeping their license longer.

Yoshida (Mazda):

At Mazda, we want to ensure our volunteer drivers feel safe and confident, and we're working to implement initiatives to support that. At the root of this is the desire for people to feel the joy of driving forever. Maintaining driving skills is important, of course, but creating safe traffic environments is also a crucial element. To help with awareness of potential danger zones, we're working with the people of Miyoshi City to create traffic safety maps that show roads with frequent speeding violations and locations where emergency braking often occurs.

Local residents participating in the pilot project gather to discuss and enhance the traffic safety maps.

Plotting danger zones on a map of the Kawanishi district in Miyoshi City.

At the forefront, leading the way

The Mutual Support Transportation initiative has the potential to provide peace of mind to individuals facing transportation challenges, both now and in the future.

We spoke with the mayor of Miyoshi City, a strong supporter of this community project.

Miyoshi City Mayor, Satoshi Fukuoka:

Seniors living in rural areas often have to drive despite feeling anxious. If they return their licenses, their mobility is limited, social interaction decreases, and there are concerns about cognitive decline. It’s my hope that this service will help create more active seniors.

In Kawanishi, where we're conducting the pilot program with Mazda, the elderly population rate is 50%, almost twice that of the national average of 29%, but everyone is very energetic. There is a clear awareness and sense of urgency to prepare a model now that can be used in 50 years.

We expect that Japan will see more of these aging communities in the future. If we can establish a successful model in our region, it could be applied to a wider area. We’re excited to be at the forefront, leading the way forward and continuing our collaboration with Mazda.

Two happy users wave “thank you” until Kodama and the CX-5 disappear from sight.

The people of Kawanishi are working not only for themselves but also with an eye toward the future of their community. Their efforts inspire Mazda to continue tackling challenges, and developing Mutual Support Transportation as a new mobility solution for aging societies.

From the Editorial Team

It’s common in Japan to move to the city for work, and many of us on the editorial team have relocated to cities, leaving behind aging parents in our hometowns. Which is why the Mutual Support Transportation story hit so close to home. The transportation challenges faced when you don’t have a license felt very real. We hope initiatives like this will spread throughout Japan, creating a future where we can all live with peace of mind.

The Mutual Support Transportation vehicles are equipped with cameras that monitor driver movements. Mazda uses this data for safety technology research, working toward a future where everyone can drive safely. We look forward to sharing this aspect of the project in the future.

※Tateshina Meeting:

An annual traffic safety conference held during the Mount Tateshina Shokoji Temple Summer Festival, where automotive industry leaders gather to pray for traffic safety. Operated by the Toyota Mobility Foundation, in July 2023 it established five working groups focused on supporting vulnerable road users like children and the elderly, reducing bicycle and motorcycle accidents, and addressing international traffic safety challenges. The Tateshina Meeting aims to achieve zero traffic accident casualties by working with government agencies and related organizations to promote initiatives through a three-pronged approach focusing on cars, people, and traffic infrastructure.