Greening of Roads

Roadside greenery enriches the surroundings and has a calming effect on people. It also has various other roles, such as enhancing the urban environment, creating attractive urban landscapes, helping traffic to move safely and smoothly, and protecting residents from fires in times of disaster.

Of the approximately 2,238km (as of April 1,2017) of roads administrated by the TMG, some 1,369 km is furnished with roadside trees, while greenery onmedian strips and traffic islands total an area of about 231 hectares.

The Project to Enhance Roadside Trees successfully reached its objective at the end of fiscal 2015.

The Bureau will now implement a detailed maintenance program for the roadside trees that have been planted, and devote further efforts to high quality
maintenance and management in order to create a lush roadside environment befitting a mature city.

In response to the need for measures to protect spectators and competitors from the summer heat at the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, the Bureau is implementing measures such as systematic pruning to ensure that ample shade is created by trees along metropolitan roads, mainly around competition venues and the marathon course, in preparation for the Games.

 

On routes particularly important from the perspective of disaster preparedness, the Bureau has been implementing a plan for the period from fiscal 2012 to fiscal 2020 to assess roadside trees 90cm or more in circumference and rehabilitate and replace weakened trees and those that could topple over in the event of a disaster, so that they will not block emergency vehicles, vehicles transporting supplies and the passage of evacuees.

Tree health inspections are being carried out on tall trees with trunks measuring 60cm or more in diameter along all metropolitan roads (roadside tree routes) to find trees in a weakened state at risk of falling or branches breaking while still in the early stages, and take the proper steps, with the aim to ensure healthy tree growth and prevent accidents caused by trees.

In implementing this program, the Bureau has compiled a Roadside Tree Inspection Manual to follow. The Bureau has also distributed this manual to all national road offices and municipalities in Tokyo, and is offering consultation and guidance on the subject.