The mayor of Toyama sparked some major urban development in his rapidly graying city when he launched last year what is considered Japan's first full-scale light rail transit system.
"The new transportation system is destined to run in the red at first. But it is a vital necessity," the 55-year-old Masashi Mori told his city at the time.
Public transit has been urged to act as a business that can be profitable on its own since the beginning of modern times in the Meiji Era (1868-1912). Mori has defied that century-old standard.