News Gifu City offers free municipal housing to new bus drivers

[thomas]

Desperate times, desperate measures.

Officials announced that starting in April, the Gifu Municipal Government will offer free housing to five new fixed-route bus drivers each year to address a severe driver shortage. The initiative, a joint effort between the city and Gifu Bus Co., will see both parties splitting the cost of rent for municipal housing, allowing drivers to live there at no charge. According to city officials, this is the first program in Japan to subsidise bus drivers' rent fully.

Gifu Bus operates 43 routes, primarily within the city, but a declining number of drivers—due to factors such as an ageing workforce and restrictions on working hours—has led to service reductions. In 2019, the company had 490 drivers, but by 2023, that number had dropped to 398, resulting in a roughly 20% decrease in bus services over five years.

Given the situation, when Gifu Bus hires new drivers, the city will provide vacant municipal housing to drivers who want it. The offer will be available to up to five drivers per year with the city and Gifu Bus each subsidizing a maximum of 20,000 yen for a total of 40,000 yen (about $270), covering the full amount of rent. The city says it will also provide a subsidy of 15,000 yen (about $100) per month to drivers renting private apartments. It has earmarked a total of 3 million yen (about $20,160) in subsidies for 15 people in the fiscal 2025 initial budget draft.

Central Japan's Gifu aiming to lure new bus drivers with free municipal housing - The Mainichi

GIFU -- The Gifu Municipal Government will start providing free accommodation to five new drivers of fixed-route buses each year from April in a bid t

mainichi.jp