Photo/Illutration Nearly all bus operators in a recent nationwide survey said they faced driver shortages. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

OKAYAMA--Driving toward a looming limitation on drivers' overtime hours, dozens of bus operators plan to reduce services or cancel routes, according to a recent survey.

All but one of the 68 operators responding to the survey said they experienced driver shortages, according to the study released on Dec. 14 by the Research Institute for Local Public Transport, affiliated with Ryobi Group, a transportation and logistic service provider based here.

Aside from recruiting new drivers, nearly half, or 32, of those understaffed companies cited reducing services to address the crisis.

More than a third, or 23, said they planned to end some routes.

Starting in April, the maximum overtime hours for bus and truck drivers will be limited to 960 hours per year, as part of the government’s effort to improve the nation’s work-life balance.

With the working hours of the existing drivers significantly reduced, a widespread disruption is expected in the transportation and logistic industry in what is called the “2024 problem.”

While 44 percent, or 30 operators, said the introduction of the overtime hour cap should be postponed, 41 percent, or 28 responders, believed it should not.

The divided opinions on the new regulation reflect the industry’s ongoing struggle with both labor shortages and the pressing need to improve drivers’ working conditions, according to the institute. 

The institute said the implementation of the overtime cap should be delayed at least three years, saying the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the industry’s planned transition to the new system.

The organization also called for relaxed regulations to allow businesses to employ foreign drivers.

The institute sent surveys to 308 bus companies across the country, each operating at least 30 vehicles, and received replies from 22 percent of them.

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