*This article is based on published data and academic knowledge as of December 2025.
*When viewing on a mobile device, you can scroll horizontally to view tables and graphs.

1. Definition and Essence: What is the "Jobo System"?

Grid Design as a State Device

First, let's clarify the definition of the grid system. In a nutshell, the grid system is"An ancient East Asian city planning system in which straight roads running north-south, east-west, and across a vast area of land were laid out in a grid pattern, and the entire city was divided into orderly blocks for management."This refers to the following.

However, the essence of a city is not simply that the roads are straight. The French architect Le Corbusier once said that a city is a tool, and for ancient rulers, the grid system was the most powerful tool, the hardware, for running a nation.

Specifically, this system can be described as a huge master plan that integrates the following three functions:

• ① Grid pattern (framework for transportation and disaster prevention)
  It serves as infrastructure for the rapid movement of troops and supplies, and also functions as a physical barrier to prevent the spread of fire.
• ② Zoning (strict functional division)
  A layout plan that clearly separates palaces (politics), government offices (administration), temples (religion), markets (economy), and residential areas (life) to optimize urban functions.
• ③ Addressing (management by coordinates)
  This database function uses coordinate axes of "jo (north-south)" and "bo (east-west)" to allow the state to instantly determine who lives where, thereby streamlining tax collection and conscription.

In other words, the Jobo system is not just about the shape of the town."Governance technologies for managing information and maintaining order"That was it.

2. Historical transition: From Chang'an to Heijo-kyo and then to Hokkaido

Acceptance of ancient global standards

So, where does this magnificent system originate? Its roots lie in ancient China. It is based on the idea of "masters running the country" as described in the Kaogongji of the Zhou Li (Records of the Zhou), which states that "the royal city should be a square with nine sides, with three gates on each side, and nine roads running north-south and east-west within the city."

From the 7th to the 8th century, Tang China was an overwhelmingly advanced country compared to Japan. The introduction of the grid system in Japan at that time was a major project that put the fate of the nation at stake, similar to importing the latest IT infrastructure to Silicon Valley today.

*Based on recent excavations conducted by the Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, the width of Suzaku-oji in Heijo-kyo is estimated to be approximately 74m, including the gutters.

The data: 74 meters of waste creates authority

What is particularly noteworthy here is the extraordinary scale of Suzaku-oji, the main street of Heijo-kyo. It is approximately 74 meters wide. To get an idea of the scale of this road, let's compare it with modern roads.

Even modern highways with three lanes in each direction are only about 30 meters wide. There is no way that a city with a population of around 100,000 at the time would have needed a width of 74 meters to meet the traffic demands.
So why was such width necessary? It was because this overwhelming "waste" was essential to visualizing the authority of the emperor. It was a long perspective created to look up at the palace towering in the distance. Urban planning has always been a device for sending out political messages.

3. Modern Jobo: The Challenge of Toyako Town, Hokkaido

Let's move the clock forward more than 1,000 years. During the Meiji period, the spirit of the grid system made a dramatic comeback in Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost prefecture.
Sapporo's urban planning was strongly influenced by American urban planning (grids from Washington, D.C., etc.), while also being strongly influenced by Kyoto's grid system. The way addresses are written, such as "Kita XX-jo Nishi XX-chome," and the division of the city into north and south with Odori Park as the axis, can be said to be a modern interpretation of the ancient grid system.

And now, this idea of "strictly managing space" has evolved into cutting-edge "landscape administration" in Toyako Town, Hokkaido.

Landscape as "capital" in tourist destinations

Toyako Town. This small town with a population of approximately 8,000 (as of 2024) is visited by over one million tourists annually. What is currently happening here is a "conscious spatial management" that is similar to the construction of ancient capital cities.
The town has enacted a "Landscape Ordinance" and designated particularly important areas as "Priority Landscape Areas." This can be thought of as a kind of sacred area designation, similar to the "Imperial Palace" of ancient times.

[Analysis] Why is protecting the landscape profitable?

Let's analyze how landscape administration is linked to economic activity using tourism data from Toyako Town. There is a shocking "gap" here.

The data speaks volumes. Overnight guests spend five times more money in a local area than day-trippers. And the essential element for attracting overnight guests is an "extraordinary environment (i.e., beautiful scenery) that makes people want to stay overnight."
This economic incentive is a strong driving force behind Toyako Town's efforts to protect its landscape, even if it means imposing a burden on the townspeople. A beautiful landscape is not just aesthetically pleasing; it is also the biggest factor supporting the local economy."Capital"So it can be said that this is the case.

4. Conclusion and the Future: Smart Shrinkage and the Age of "Choice"

However, this system also faces challenges. Both ancient capitals and modern cities face a common challenge: the struggle with maintenance costs.
In Heian-kyo, the swampy Ukyo (west side) fell into early decline and was virtually abandoned, a historical fact that the city shrank to accommodate its size.

Similarly, in modern Japanese regional cities where the population is declining, it is no longer possible to maintain all infrastructure and landscapes in a uniform manner."Smart Shrink"That's the idea.

It is predicted that future urban planning will become increasingly polarized as follows:

• Special occasions (high density management areas):Tourist hubs and residential areas are places where regulations are strengthened and stunning scenic beauty is maintained even at high cost, in order to earn foreign currency.
• Ke no Ba (return to nature area):Areas that are less managed and left to natural succession, or abandoned through intensification.

Just as ancient rulers once drew lines with rulers, we today find ourselves at a stage where we must coldly redraw the "city boundaries" based on data and consensus building.

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