On Wednesday November 26, 2025, a peaceful day in the end of autumn, the 2025 Atsumi Foundation fellows gathered at Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, to observe a tunnel construction site, currently under construction by Kajima Corporation.

We gathered at the Motomachi-Chukagai Station at 14:30 PM and boarded a microbus to the construction office. Before the sightseeing, Executive Director Atsumi Naoki greeted us and gave a concise explanation about civil engineering. After that, Director Onozuka who is responsible for the site provided the outline of the "Train Car Yard Plan for Minatomirai Directly under Harbor View Park," commissioned by Yokohama Minatomirai Railway Company. The explanation regarding the scheme of joint venture for this construction, the construction method of the tunnel and the automation system currently under development and implementation was well-crafted and very easy to understand, even to someone without expert knowledge like myself.

After the explanation and some questions and answers, we equipped ourselves with a helmet and an intercom, and boarded the microbus again to travel to the construction site near the Harbor View Park. At 20 meters underground, we got to see a tunnel under construction with various equipment, including an automated concrete sprayer. We proceeded while receiving Deputy Director Sato's kind explanation, until we reached the tunnel face, the frontline of tunnel digging. The sight struck me with nature's grandeur and the technological prowess of humans who challenge it. This was an invaluable experience that reinforced how infrastructural maintenance supports the base of society. I was also impressed by the working environment that is kept so clean that it is hard to believe it is under construction, and the efforts spent to minimize the impact of sound, tremor and sunlight to residents nearby.

After the sightseeing, we had a gathering at a nearby Turkish restaurant, along with staffs of Kajima Corporation. I was able to have a great time because of everyone, along with the great food. What especially stuck with me was Director Onozuka's abundant knowledge and proficient rhetoric that allowed him to respond to any kind of question extremely well. Not only that, I learned a lot from his talk on the sense of mission and principle as the site director, and qualities required in a leader.

This sightseeing was an invaluable opportunity that let me into a world I would usually not be able to see, and made me think as to how much technology and efforts underlies the day-to-day life that I have taken for granted. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Executive Director Atsumi as well as everyone involved with Kajima Corporation for setting aside their precious time for this opportunity. I have heard that this project, reaching its 5th year, is expected to finish in 2030. I pray for a speedy completion, with no accident or hazard.

Written by: Lee Jae-Chang (2025 Fellow)

Pictures from the day