An ultra-compact electric vehicle charging at a Ha:mo (Harmonious Mobility Network) RIDE station in front of Toyota City hall, Aichi prefecture, on December 3, 2014– More than just cars – While the Corolla and Prius hybrid maker now has plants in every corner of the globe, Toyota City still has a total of 10 factories building cars and parts in the city proper and surrounding area. There are about 70,000 local people working for Toyota in the area, many whose parents or grandparents also relied on the giant company for a pay cheque, with about 40 percent of local employees working in the auto sector. So it seemed appropriate that, in 1959, the town changed its name to Toyota-Shi, or Toyota City in English, although that was a controversial move at the time — and the current mayor says his community is about more than just one industry. Toyota City has many faces, which is sometimes masked by cars.” But the reality is, despite efforts to diversify the local economy, it is still heavily dependent on Toyota and local suppliers, with the company’s subsidiaries also involved in real estate, tourism, and insurance.