Hakodate-Esashi Expressway

The Hakodate-Esashi Expressway (函館江差自動車道, Hakodate-Esashi Jidōshadō) is an incomplete two-lane national expressway in Oshima Subprefecture of Hokkaido, Japan. It is owned and operated by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and is signed E5A as an extension of the Hokkaido Expressway under the "2016 Proposal for Realization of Expressway Numbering."[1]

Hakodate-Esashi Expressway
函館江差自動車道
Route information
Length18.0 km (11.2 mi)
Existed2003–present
Major junctions
North end Hakodate Shindō
at Hakodate Junction
South endHokkaido Route 1167
at Hokutomoheji Interchange
Location
Major citiesHakodate
Hokuto
Highway system
National highways of Japan
Expressways of Japan

Route description

Officially, the current (as of January 2019) section of expressway open is known as the Hakodate-Moheji Road. It is 18.0 kilometres (11.2 mi) long. The speed limit is set at 100 km/h along its entirety. With the exception of a short section at Hakodate Junction, the expressway only has one lane in each direction.[2]

The roads northern terminus is at an interchange with Hakodate Shindō, a southern extension of the Hokkaido Expressway. From here the road travels west out of Hakodate and in to Hokuto. Upon entering Hokuto it has a junction with Japan National Route 227. It then crosses the Kunebetsu and Ōno rivers before another junction, this time with Hokkaido Route 96. From here, the route curves to the southwest, roughly paralleling the Hokkaido Shinkansen rail line, while the older Esashi Line winds back and forth alongside the expressway. The expressway abruptly meets in temporary southern terminus at Hokkaido Route 1167 in the southern part of Hokuto near Moheji Station.

History

The expressway was first opened between Hakodate Junction and Hokuto-chūō Interchange in 2003. At the time of construction, the open interchanges in Hokuto had different names. Those interchanges were renamed Hokuto-Oiwake and Hokuto-chūō in October 2009. Shortly after, in November of the same year, the expressway was extended to Hokuto-Tomigawa. Most recently, in March of 2012 the expressway was extended to Hokuto-Moheji.[3]

Future

Construction is underway to extend the expressway 16.0 kilometres (9.9 mi) to Kikonai; however, progress was delayed due to the finding of Jōmon period relics in the construction area. The expected completion date for this extension is 2021.[4]

Junction list

The entire expressway is in Hokkaido.

LocationkmmiExitNameDestinationsNotes
Through to National Route 278 (Hakodate Shinsotokan Road)
Hakodate00.01Hakodate Hakodate Shindō– Nanae, Sapporo,
Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station		Northern terminus.
Hokuto3.42.12Hokuto-Oiwake National Route 227
8.05.03Hokuto-chūōHokkaido Route 96
12.67.84Hokuto-Tomigawa National Route 228Northbound entrance and southbound exit only
18.011.25Hokuto-MohejiHokkaido Route 1167Current southern terminus as of January 2019
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References
  1. "Japan's Expressway Numbering System". www.mlit.go.jp.
  2. "函館江差自動車道" (PDF) (in Japanese). 2016. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  3. "お知らせ" [Notice] (PDF) (in Japanese). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  4. "函館江差自動車道 茂辺地木古内道路の開通予定の見直し" [Revised date for the opening of the Kikonai Extension of the Hakodate-Esashi Expressway] (pdf). Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (in Japanese). 26 July 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2019.

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