A consortium for constructing a tunnel for the planned extension of the Hokkaido Shinkansen bullet train line was found to have engaged in fraud regarding concrete quality control tests, a government-affiliated agency in charge of the extension project said Tuesday.
The Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency (JRTT) said the four-company consortium led by Tekken was confirmed to have committed fraud three times in the construction of the Futatsumori Tunnel for the bullet train line extension from Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station in the city of Hokuto in Hokkaido and Sapporo Station in Sapporo.
The wrongdoing is “very regrettable,” the JRTT said, adding that it is investigating whether there are issues with the strength of the concrete already used for the tunnel. It is unclear whether the incident will affect the opening schedule for the extended section, JRTT also said.
According to the JRTT, consortium workers manipulated a measuring instrument during tests to gauge the amount of water in the concrete, an indicator of durability, so that the results fell within the standard value.
The fraud was discovered by a JRTT official who observed a test conducted June 12. The agency instructed the consortium to investigate the matter, and it was revealed that similar misconduct occurred in early December last year and early February this year.
Similar irregularities were not found in any of other contracts for the Hokkaido Shinkansen extension project.
Tekken published an apology Tuesday, saying this is a serious incident that undermines the credibility of quality control tests. It pledged to identify the cause of the test fraud and take thorough measures to prevent a recurrence.