Dynamic Access Network Reorganization for the Depopulation Age

The populations of industrialized countries will decline over the coming decades. To ensure that we have efficient access networks in the coming age of depopulation, it is important to consider the reorganization of central offices over time. The cost for operating and maintaining central offices can be reduced by efficiently closing central offices. However, dynamic facility location models that have been developed largely focused on the problem of optimally expanding a network over time to meet increasing demand. The practical relevance of the dynamic models is limited because the complexity and the required amount of data are much greater than with static models. This paper proposes a dynamic access network reorganization model for the depopulation age. Although the proposed model is a dynamic model, it is simple because it assumes that the only option will be to close central offices. The model first searches for a set of optimal solutions for each planning period as a capacitated facility location problem. Then, it selects the optimal combination of optimal solutions that can minimize the total number of open offices with the limitation of network reorganization. The validity of the proposed model was evaluated with computer simulations. It was confirmed that although the proposed model is a dynamic model it is simple and practical.