The governors of four prefectures have spoken out against an extra 410 billion yen tacked onto the budget for new lines on the bullet train network.
The cost of building new bullet train lines is shared by the national government -- which foots two-thirds of the bill -- and local governments, which pay the remainder. In fiscal 2008, the state paid 204.6 billion yen toward construction costs, with local governments contributing another 102.3 billion yen.
Niigata Gov. Hirohiko Izumida voiced his opposition to the hike on Feb. 12, saying: "There have been no sufficient explanations for the increase from the government.
Total construction costs for the new lines in the Tohoku, Hokkaido, Hokuriku and Kyushu areas were predicted to cost a total of 3.58 trillion yen. However, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced at the end of last year that rising material costs and other expenses will raise that figure by another 410 billion yen.
