Incident Overview

On April 6, 2025, a critical failure disrupted the ETC system across central Japan. Beginning around 12:30 a.m., ETC toll processing stopped at over 100 locations. Automated gates failed, leading to widespread congestion. Barriers were lifted, and updates were issued via multiple channels. The issue lasted roughly 38 hours before systems were restored. For more information, refer to the NEXCO Central Report.

Root Cause

A new ETC card validation subsystem being tested for a future discount program introduced a software bug. Corrupted memory fragments caused erroneous data transmission, resulting in ETC cards being falsely flagged as invalid. Engineers verified the issue through controlled testing and confirmed the flaw was in new code introduced for the deep night discount rollout.

Emergency Response

• Barriers Raised: Manual overrides were implemented at 1:30 p.m. on April 6.
• Public Communication: Updates delivered via highway signs, radio, and online platforms.
• System Fix: Software patch deployed by April 7, 2:00 p.m., restoring ETC functionality.

Short-Term Countermeasures

• Gate Operations: New protocols for barrier lifting with license plate tracking.
• Information Sharing: Centralized control of public messaging for clarity and consistency.
• IT Response: 24/7 support and crisis manuals to isolate and resolve issues swiftly.
• Headquarters Coordination: Emergency thresholds now trigger a top-down response.
• Escalation Framework: Priority notification to executives and authorities established.

Legal Clarifications

• Toll Responsibility: Drivers remain liable for tolls, even during barrier lifts.
• Defect Liability: Compensation determined case-by-case if system flaws are relevant.
• Authorized Passage: Gate access during emergencies is not considered unauthorized use.

Discount Delay

Launch of the new late-night discount program has been postponed indefinitely until the ETC system undergoes full validation and stability testing.

Committee & Future Plans

A dedicated review committee is developing a comprehensive manual for ETC system failure scenarios. Policy reforms and new safeguards will be introduced with expert and government collaboration, with updates expected by mid-June 2025.

Emergency Response and Recovery

The highway operators responded to the ETC system outage with several urgent measures to manage the situation and restore traffic flow:

• Opening Toll Barriers: By 1:30 p.m. on April 6, toll gate arms were raised at affected plazas to allow vehicles to pass without delay or toll collection. This measure helped prevent worsening congestion and ensured smoother traffic movement.
• Informing the Public: NEXCO Central used highway signboards, radio, websites, and social media to communicate real-time updates, traffic conditions, and instructions for post-trip toll payments.
• Restoring ETC Services: A software patch was issued, and ETC operations resumed by 2:00 p.m. on April 7, marking the end of a roughly 38-hour system disruption.

These quick responses mitigated public frustration and restored functionality as efficiently as possible. Focus then shifted to long-term improvements.

Short-Term Operational Countermeasures

Toll Gate Operations

A standard procedure was introduced to lift barriers and allow traffic to pass safely while retaining ETC signal functionality for tracking vehicle data.

Customer Information

Communications have been centralized to ensure accurate and fast updates across electronic signs, broadcasts, web platforms, and apps, reducing confusion and panic during future outages.

IT System Recovery

A 24/7 IT support team and a formal ETC recovery manual were introduced, enabling faster diagnostics and bug resolution. Vendors and engineers will work collaboratively under improved protocols.

Headquarters Response

A new emergency threshold policy enables headquarters to initiate a top-down command structure when a serious ETC failure occurs, speeding up action and ensuring cross-regional support.

Communication Structure

ETC failure alerts are now escalated with priority to executive teams, enabling collaboration with government ministries and ensuring traffic coordination nationwide.

Legal Clarifications

Toll Fees and Refunds

All drivers are still obligated to pay tolls even if they passed through gates while barriers were lifted. Toll-free passage due to system failure does not waive the fee, and refunds will not be granted due to delays caused by the outage.

Liability for Delays and Incidents

While the system bug may be considered a defect under Japanese law, compensation for traffic delays or collisions will be handled individually, as per expressway contract terms.

Clarification on Unauthorized Use

Drivers who passed through open ETC gates during the failure are not considered toll evaders. Operators explicitly permitted passage, and tolls are simply considered deferred—not voided or criminal.

Deep Night Discount System Delay

The ETC system failure stemmed from new software for a revised midnight toll discount. The implementation of this program has been postponed indefinitely until full system stability is confirmed. Future updates will be provided as the situation progresses.

Committee Actions and Future Plans

A special committee was established in April 2025 to oversee the recovery, propose further safeguards, and monitor the stability of the ETC infrastructure. Their work will include evaluations of recovery protocols and simulations for broader outages.

The committee will also collaborate with national transportation authorities and is expected to release progress updates and revised guidelines in future phases of review and policy reform.

Incident Overview

In the early hours of April 6, 2025, a widespread malfunction occurred in the Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) system across portions of central Japan’s expressways. Beginning around 12:30 AM, some toll plazas managed by NEXCO Central Japan experienced a critical system failure that prevented ETC toll transactions from processing normally. As a result, ETC lanes became unusable and vehicles could not pass through those dedicated lanes, leading to significant traffic congestion. For context, traffic backups exceeding 2 km were recorded at about 10 locations. The outage ultimately affected toll stations across 17 expressway routes (approximately 106 toll booths) spanning a broad region, including Tokyo and seven prefectures (Kanagawa, Shizuoka, Yamanashi, Aichi, Mie, Gifu, and Nagano).

This incident caused considerable disruption to highway traffic flow through April 6. Motorists faced delays and confusion as the normally smooth ETC lane passage was suddenly unavailable at impacted toll gates. The expressway operators quickly recognized the gravity of the situation and began implementing emergency measures while investigating the cause of the failure. A crisis management committee comprising the three regional expressway companies (East, Central, and West Japan NEXCO) was convened to analyze the incident and coordinate the response across all affected areas.

Detailed Root Cause

After thorough investigation, the root cause of the ETC system failure was identified as a software bug in the data distribution process for ETC card validation. Under normal operation, two streams of data are transmitted daily to each toll plaza server: one stream carries toll charge transaction data (this continued using the existing stable system), and the other stream carries data used to determine whether an ETC card is valid for use. The latter data stream was being delivered by a new system under development as part of a planned update to the late-night (deep night) discount program.

The failure occurred during the distribution of the ETC card validation data from a central “wide-area management system” to regional toll systems. A defect in the new program caused corruption of the data during transmission. Specifically, an unrelated piece of information (a “destination address” data fragment from a previous transmission) was mistakenly written into the ETC card validation data segment, corrupting its contents. The software lacked a function to clear out old destination address data from memory, so with each update this extraneous data accumulated and eventually intruded into the critical card validation information.

This data corruption led toll system logic to incorrectly judge some customer vehicles’ ETC cards as invalid. In other words, vehicles that should have been recognized as valid ETC users were erroneously flagged as invalid, causing the toll gate’s barrier not to lift for them. This chain of events is what caused the ETC lanes to effectively shut down for those users at the affected toll plazas. Engineers were able to replicate the data corruption in a controlled test environment (reproducing identical failure conditions), which confirmed this mechanism as the definitive cause of the system outage. With the cause identified, the faulty program was targeted for immediate correction to prevent any recurrence of this issue.

Emergency Response & Recovery

Faced with growing congestion and customer impact on April 6, NEXCO Central Japan and its partner companies initiated emergency response measures even as the root cause was under investigation. By early afternoon on April 6 (around 1:30 PM), expressway operators took the decisive step of opening the ETC lane barriers at all affected toll plazas. Toll gate staff raised the lane control bars and allowed vehicles to pass through without collecting toll fees on the spot. This immediate action was aimed at dispersing the accumulating traffic jams and enabling drivers to continue their journeys, thereby prioritizing safety and traffic flow over revenue collection in the moment.

Concurrently, efforts were made to keep the public informed. Each regional office leveraged various media and communication channels (such as highway radio updates, electronic signage, websites, and social media) to alert customers about the ETC system issue and to guide their travel behavior. Real-time information on the status of the lanes, the extent of the disruption, and guidance for alternative actions was continuously provided to help motorists make informed decisions and reduce further congestion. Additionally, for customers who passed through toll booths without paying due to the emergency measures, instructions were disseminated (including via web announcements) on how to submit unpaid toll information later, ensuring that tolls could be settled after the fact once systems were restored.

An expedited technical response was underway in parallel. System engineers and vendor technicians worked around the clock to restore ETC services. By April 7, 2025 (Monday) at approximately 2:00 PM, a provisional system recovery was achieved. This emergency fix allowed ETC operations to resume at all toll lanes, meaning all vehicles — including those with ETC — could once again use the ETC lanes normally from that point forward. The swift restoration marked the end of the acute phase of the incident, though further work continued to fully resolve underlying issues and implement longer-term solutions.

Implemented Countermeasures

In response to this incident, the expressway companies (NEXCO East, Central, and West) have enacted a series of immediate countermeasures to prevent a similar occurrence and to improve resilience if such a system failure were to happen again. These measures were developed and agreed upon shortly after the incident as part of a comprehensive crisis management plan. The key countermeasures implemented include:

Toll Gate Operations

In the event a widespread ETC system failure is detected or suspected, toll gate personnel are now instructed to promptly switch affected ETC lanes to a fail-safe mode. This means raising the barrier arms to allow vehicles to pass through freely without stopping, thereby temporarily suspending on-the-spot toll collection to prevent severe congestion buildup. Drivers are allowed to continue their journeys, and any tolls incurred during the outage are later reconciled through post-incident billing processes rather than at the moment of passage.

This operational change essentially formalizes the ad-hoc emergency response that was employed on April 6, ensuring that any future incident will be handled immediately in the same manner to keep traffic moving. Meanwhile, toll staff and systems will continue to monitor and log the vehicles passing through (for example, using license plate recognition or other tracking methods) so that accurate toll usage data is retained and all fees can be collected once the ETC system is back online.

Customer Information

Communication protocols have been enhanced to provide timely and consistent information to travelers during any ETC system disruption. A dedicated information coordination role at the NEXCO headquarters level will be activated to oversee public communications whenever a wide-area ETC failure is suspected. This central coordination ensures that all regional offices (branch companies) disseminate unified and accurate information. All available communication channels — including roadside electronic message boards (both at exits and across wider highway networks), highway radio broadcasts, navigation systems (via VICS/ETC2.0 data feeds), official websites, and social media platforms — will be utilized to broadcast updates.

Importantly, messaging will be consistent across regions, using pre-defined standard expressions and comprehensive content so that drivers receive clear guidance no matter where they are. Information will cover the nature of the disruption, which toll gates or lanes are affected, guidance on using regular lanes or alternative routes, and updates on traffic conditions. The timing of information release is also planned: updates will be issued swiftly according to a preset timeline that aligns with incident escalation (for example, initial alert, ongoing status, and recovery notification). Additionally, the highway companies will coordinate with other road authorities (such as local road operators and the national road agency) to share information. This coordination means that even on general roads (surface streets), drivers might receive information about the highway ETC outage (for instance, on digital signs before entering the highway), ensuring a broader reach of important advisories.

IT System Recovery

To minimize downtime in the future, the NEXCO group has strengthened its IT emergency response and recovery framework. A 24/7 on-call support system has been established that includes NEXCO’s in-house IT teams, subsidiary maintenance companies, and the external system vendors responsible for the ETC infrastructure. This around-the-clock coordination means that if an ETC system anomaly is detected at any time, the right technical experts can be convened immediately to diagnose and address the problem. Particularly during periods of system updates or modifications (such as the rollout of new software, like the one related to the deep night discount program), all relevant parties will share schedules and technical details in advance. This ensures awareness across the board and allows for faster troubleshooting if something goes wrong during or after such changes.

In addition, the specific software program that caused the April 6 failure has been corrected as a matter of priority. The flawed logic responsible for data corruption was fixed to prevent a recurrence of that exact issue. More broadly, the IT teams are reviewing the system architecture to identify any other potential single points of failure and to implement checks (such as data integrity verification and failover processes) that could help catch or isolate problems before they spread across the network. This countermeasure recognizes that the initial incident response was delayed partly because the organization lacked a pre-established rapid recovery procedure for a wide-area ETC failure. By instituting these IT recovery protocols and drills, the expressway companies aim to significantly shorten the diagnosis and repair time for any future system problem.

Headquarters Response

NEXCO has reinforced its crisis management structure at the headquarters level to respond more swiftly to wide-scale system malfunctions. Clear criteria have been defined to quickly recognize when an ETC issue warrants a company-wide emergency response. Specifically, a threshold has been set (for example, if multiple toll plazas — more than one — report ETC lane stoppages within a short period, or if an unusual concentration of ETC lane errors occurs) that will immediately trigger the activation of a crisis response team at headquarters. Once this threshold is met or exceeded, the headquarters will initiate a formal emergency command center to manage the incident.

Under this enhanced protocol, designated headquarters staff will begin rapid information gathering from all regions, coordinate directly with branch offices, and scale up the response organization in line with the severity of the situation. This may include deploying additional field support, bringing in technical experts, and liaising with external stakeholders such as the national Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and other relevant authorities. By treating a wide-area ETC system failure as a serious incident from the outset (rather than handling it as a routine technical issue), NEXCO aims to minimize customer impact through quicker decision-making and resource deployment. The absence of such predefined criteria in the April 6 incident meant the initial reaction was not as expansive as it should have been; the new measures rectify this by ensuring a robust headquarters-led response kicks in as soon as a widespread problem is detected.

Communication Structure

Alongside the headquarters response, the internal and external communication framework for incident reporting has been overhauled. The definition of a “wide-area ETC system failure” has now been formalized as any situation in which multiple toll stations experience ETC lane failures concurrently. With this definition in place, NEXCO has revised its reporting and notification system so that such an event is flagged as a critical incident in all communication channels. Previously, while the traffic control centers did have email alert procedures for ETC malfunctions, the alerts for an issue of this magnitude did not automatically escalate to a top-priority, company-wide alarm. This has now changed.

Under the new communication structure, the moment a wide-area ETC failure is identified (by meeting the predefined criteria), an emergency alert will be disseminated through the organization’s hierarchy – from toll plaza staff and regional control centers up to the headquarters management – using urgent channels (such as emergency phone lines or priority messaging systems, not just routine email). Key personnel in all three NEXCO companies will be notified to assemble and coordinate as part of the crisis management team. Moreover, communication lines with governmental road regulators and local authorities are established to facilitate information exchange and joint response efforts. This improved communications setup ensures that everyone from on-site engineers to senior executives and public agencies are in the loop immediately and consistently, enabling a synchronized and effective response to mitigate the incident’s impact.

Legal Clarifications

In light of the unique circumstances of this incident, the expressway companies have provided clarifications on several legal and policy points to address customer concerns regarding tolls and liability:

Toll Fees and Terms of Use

When customers use the expressway, their usage is governed by the expressway’s terms of service (as laid out in the expressway company’s usage agreements and the national expressway legislation). By entering and driving on the highway, a customer consents to these terms of use, meaning a contractual relationship is established the moment they begin using the toll road. Under these terms and the applicable highway laws (specifically the national Highway Maintenance Special Measures Law, etc.), the toll paid is strictly the fee for the act of using the highway, not a guarantee of travel time or service level. Therefore, even if there are delays or disruptions (such as those caused by this system failure), the policy is that toll fees are still owed for the road usage. The expressway companies do not offer refunds, exemptions, or reductions of toll charges due to traffic jams or delayed travel time because the toll is not intended to cover a promise of uninterrupted or delay-free travel.

Liability and System Defects

The companies addressed the question of whether the ETC system failure could be considered a “defect” in the highway service and what that means for liability. In legal terms, if a highway (or its associated systems like ETC) has a significant flaw or malfunction, it is possible that a court could judge it as a defect in the road’s management or infrastructure, depending on the nature and extent of the problem. Such a determination would be case-specific. The expressway operators acknowledge this possibility and have stated that whether this particular incident constitutes a defect would have to be evaluated based on the specific facts and circumstances, likely on a case-by-case basis if claims arise.

Regarding compensation for damages (such as financial losses due to delays), the companies clarified their stance: Given that travel time on a highway can be affected by numerous factors—some under customer control, some under the company’s control, and some beyond either party’s control—the usage terms explicitly state that the expressway company is not liable for losses caused by delays, regardless of whether or not there was a system defect. In other words, even if the ETC system failure were considered a kind of service defect, the standard contract terms mean the company does not assume responsibility to compensate drivers for time lost in traffic jams. This applies broadly to delays caused by congestion. However, the companies also noted that incidents such as accidents that occur during congestion or other extraordinary situations would be addressed individually, indicating that they are prepared to consider specific cases separately as needed.

Unauthorized Use Clarification

Some customers wondered if driving through the toll booths without paying at the time (due to the barriers being raised during the emergency) could be considered an “unauthorized” or illegal toll usage. The expressway companies have clarified that these cases do not count as toll evasion or unauthorized driving. Since the toll operator proactively allowed vehicles to pass as an emergency measure with the understanding that tolls would be paid afterward, these passages are deemed authorized. In essence, the company temporarily suspended the normal toll collection process, but the expectation of payment remains, and the company will collect the tolls through the proper procedures after the fact. Drivers who went through the open toll gates under these circumstances are not in violation of any rules because they were following the company’s instructions during an emergency. Customers are being informed about how to pay any unpaid tolls incurred during the outage period, and the companies are ensuring that this process is as smooth as possible.

Deep Night Discount System Delay

Prior to this incident, the expressway companies were preparing to implement a revised “deep night discount” program (a toll discount for late-night highway usage) around July 2025. However, in light of the April 6 system failure and the subsequent remedial actions needed, the timeline for this new discount system’s rollout is being reassessed. The planned implementation schedule will undergo a thorough review to accommodate the necessary system fixes and additional safeguards identified during the incident’s aftermath. Ensuring that the ETC system is stable and secure is the top priority; therefore, if extra time is required to fully test and integrate the discount-related system changes (to avoid introducing any new issues), the launch of the deep night discount program may be postponed. The companies are in the process of reevaluating the project timeline and will provide an updated schedule once they confirm that all prerequisites for safe implementation are met. Customers will be informed accordingly so they know when to expect the new late-night discount to take effect, with the understanding that this careful approach is to prevent any recurrence of system problems.

Committee Actions & Future Plans

Following the incident, the three NEXCO companies (East, Central, West) jointly established a “Wide-Area ETC System Failure Crisis Management Review Committee” to drive the investigation and improvement process. This committee has been tasked with analyzing the incident in depth, formulating countermeasures (both immediate and long-term), and ensuring that the lessons learned translate into concrete changes in operations and policy. The committee convened its first meeting on April 18, 2025, which focused on reviewing the details of the incident (what happened and how it unfolded) and examining the technical causes of the system failure. By the second meeting on April 22, 2025, the committee was presented with the confirmed cause analysis results (as described above) and a draft of the immediate countermeasures to be implemented. These countermeasures, covering toll operations, customer communication, IT system fixes, and organizational protocols, were discussed and refined.

Looking ahead, the committee has outlined a schedule to ensure all necessary follow-up actions are completed. In the coming weeks, the committee will engage in further discussions, including soliciting feedback and advice from external experts (for instance, systems engineers, risk management specialists, and consumer representatives) regarding the prevention of similar incidents in the future. One area of focus will be planning for even more extreme scenarios — for example, how to handle a situation where the entire ETC network might become non-functional. The committee intends to work in consultation with government authorities and regulators to develop guidelines for such worst-case situations.

By around mid-June 2025, the committee aims to finalize a comprehensive set of recurrence prevention measures and to compile a crisis response manual specifically tailored for wide-area system failures like this one. This manual will codify the processes, communication flows, and decision-making criteria so that if a similar wide-scale ETC outage occurs, all parties involved have clear guidance to follow. The expressway companies are committed to transparently implementing these plans and will report the outcomes of the committee’s work to the public. The overarching goal of these efforts is to bolster the highway toll system’s reliability and to maintain public trust by demonstrating that the lessons from the April 2025 failure have been fully learned and acted upon.

24,000 drivers scrupulously submit payment offers after expressway collection system breaks
 

Updated Reimbursement Policy (As of May 2, 2025)

In response to the widespread ETC system failure that occurred between April 6 and April 7, 2025, Central Nippon Expressway Co., Ltd. has issued an updated refund and billing policy as of May 2. The company has acknowledged the significant inconvenience caused and will be issuing reimbursements and toll charge adjustments to affected users.

Summary of Reimbursement Measures

• Customers already billed or soon to be billed: You will receive one of the following, depending on your billing method: an ETC mileage point rebate, a reduction in your billed amount, or a QUO gift card of equivalent value.
• Customers who used ETC credit cards, ETC personal cards, other credit cards, or cash: You will not be charged any toll usage fees related to the outage period. No action is required.
• Customers who did not request payment procedures: You will not be charged, and the request submission window has officially closed as of May 2.
• Corporate card holders (large volume / high frequency discounts):
  • If you requested mileage recalculations: Your request will be reflected in your discount rate recalculations.
  • If you did not request recalculations: You are encouraged to do so promptly to ensure your contract's discount benefits are preserved.

Inquiries

ETC Rebate Customer Service
Phone: 0120-628-623 (Toll-free)
Hours: 24 hours, including weekends and holidays

This refund initiative is part of a broader effort to restore public confidence and ensure fairness for all drivers impacted by the outage. Full details are available on the NEXCO official website.

External News:
Central Nippon Expressway won't collect tolls after ETC glitch