Jōshin-etsu Expressway

Jōshin-etsu Expressway
Jōshin-etsu Expressway
上信越自動車道
Route information
Length	204.9 km (127.3 mi)
Existed	1980–present
Major junctions
From	Kan-etsu Expressway; in Fujioka, Gunma
To	Hokuriku Expressway; in Jōetsu, Niigata
Location
Major cities	Tomioka, Annaka, Saku, Komoro, Ueda, Chikuma, Nagano, Nakano, Myōkō
Highway system
	National highways of Japan; Expressways of Japan

The Jōshin-etsu Expressway (上信越自動車道, Jōshin-etsu Jidōsha-dō) is a national expressway in Japan. It is owned and operated by East Nippon Expressway Company.

Naming[]

Jōshin-etsu (上信越) is a kanji acronym consisting of 3 characters, each representing the former names of the prefectures that the route traverses. Kōzuke Province (上野国) consists of present-day Gunma Prefecture, Shinano Province (信濃国) consists of present-day Nagano Prefecture, and Echigo Province (越後国) consists of present-day Niigata Prefecture.

Officially, the expressway is referred to as the Kan-Etsu Expressway Jōetsu Route. This designation consists of the entire Jōshin-etsu Expressway as well as the Kan-Etsu Expressway beyond Fujioka Junction to Nerima Interchange (concurrent with the Kan-Etsu Expressway Niigata Route).^[3]

Route description[]

Expressway in Ueda, Nagano

The expressway begins at a junction with the Kan-Etsu Expressway in southern Gunma Prefecture and heads west, paralleling National Route 254 until Shimonita. From here the route branches north, passing Mount Myōgi, then heads west once more from Annaka. The route parallels National Route 18 from this point until the terminus. The expressway then follows a winding route through the mountainous area separating Gunma and Nagano Prefectures. From Saku, Nagano the route follows a northwesterly course, passing Mount Asama, until it reaches a junction with the Nagano Expressway near the city of Nagano. The route then heads north, following the east bank of the Chikuma River, before heading into the mountainous region separating Nagano and Niigata Prefectures. The expressway continues north through Niigata Prefecture, passing Mount Myōkō, and eventually terminating at a junction with the Hokuriku Expressway in Jōetsu near the Japan Sea coastline.

The expressway is 6 lanes from Fujioka Junction to . The remaining section from Fujioka Interchange to Jōetsu Junction is 4 lanes, from 5 December 2019 according to E-NEXCO.^[4]

History[]

The first section was completed in 1980 and the entire route was completed in 1999.^[5] On the night of 16 December 2020, about 300 vehicles were trapped on the expressway after a truck blocked it off due to it becoming stuck in the snow. In response, the company that manages the route supplied drivers who were stuck on the road until the next morning.^[6]

List of interchanges and features[]

IC - interchange, SIC - smart interchange, JCT - junction, SA - service area, PA - parking area, BS - bus stop, CB - snow chains, TN - tunnel, BR - bridge

No.	Name	Connections	Dist. from Origin	Dist. from Terminus	Bus Stop	Notes	Speed Limit	Location
(9)		Kan-etsu Expressway	0.0	204.9			80 km/h	Fujioka	Gunma
1/PA	/	Pref. Route 13 (Maebashi Nagatoro Route)	1.8	203.1		Parking Area/Highway Oasis only accessible to Fujioka JCT-bound traffic	80 km/h
1/PA	/	Pref. Route 13 (Maebashi Nagatoro Route)	1.8	203.1			100 km/h
2		Pref. Route 41 (Kanda Yoshii Teishajō Route)	11.2	193.7				Takasaki
PA			15.4	189.5				Kanra
3			20.1	184.8	○			Tomioka
4		National Route 254	26.8	178.1	○			Shimonita
5		Pref. Route 51 (Matsuida Shimonita Route)	37.5	167.4	○			Annaka
5		Pref. Route 51 (Matsuida Shimonita Route)	37.5	167.4	○		80 km/h
SA			42.1	162.8
BR			↓	↑
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,019m Jōetsu-bound 1,070m
6		Pref. Route 92 (Matsuida Karuizawa Route)	52.5	152.4	○
CB			↓	↑
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,722m Jōetsu-bound 1,625m
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,722m Jōetsu-bound 1,625m		Shimonita
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 2,314m Jōetsu-bound 2,051m
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 373m
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 3,998m Jōetsu-bound 4,471m
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 3,998m Jōetsu-bound 4,471m		Saku	Nagano
CB			↓	↑
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,703m Jōetsu-bound 1,960m
6-1/PA			68.4	136.5		Highway Oasis
7		Pref. Route 9 (Saku Karuizawa Route)	71.3	133.6	○
7-1		Chūbu-Ōdan Expressway	72.8	132.1				Komoro
BS			78.0	126.9	○
8		Pref. Route 79 (Komoro Ueda Route)	82.1	122.8
9/SA	/	Pref. Route 81 (Maruko Tōbu Inter Route)	88.6	116.3	○			Tōmi
10		National Route 144	96.9	108.0	○			Ueda
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 4,264m Jōetsu-bound 4,303m		Ueda
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 4,264m Jōetsu-bound 4,303m		Sakaki
11		Pref. Route 91 (Sakaki Inter Route)	104.8	100.1
PA			106.2	98.7	○
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 4,518m Jōetsu-bound 4,474m
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 4,518m Jōetsu-bound 4,474m		Chikuma
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,421m Jōetsu-bound 1,450m
BS			117.1	87.8	○
12		Nagano Expressway	119.1	85.8
12		Nagano Expressway	119.1	85.8			100 km/h
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,212m Jōetsu-bound 1,181m
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,212m Jōetsu-bound 1,181m		Nagano
PA			123.2	81.7
13	Nagano IC	Pref. Route 35 (Nagano Sanada Route)	125.1	79.8	○
BS			130.2	74.7	○
14		National Route 403	135.0	69.9
14		National Route 403	135.0	69.9				Suzaka
BS			137.5	67.4	○			Suzaka
14-1/PA		Pref. Route 343 (Murayama Obuse Teishajō Route)	141.6	63.3		Highway Oasis		Obuse
BS			143.2	61.7	○			Obuse
15		Pref. Route 29 (Nakano Toyono Route)	146.5	58.4				Nakano
15		Pref. Route 29 (Nakano Toyono Route)	146.5	58.4			80 km/h
BS			147.2	57.7	○
BR			↓	↑		Length - 370m Chikuma River crossing
CB			↓	↑
16		National Route 117	154.2	50.7
16		National Route 117	154.2	50.7			70 km/h
BS			155.0	49.9	○
TN			↓	↑
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 1,415m Jōetsu-bound 1,441m		Iizuna
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 2,320m Jōetsu-bound 2,362m		Iizuna
TN			↓	↑		Fujioka-bound 2,320m Jōetsu-bound 2,362m		Shinano
PA			164.3	40.6
BS			166.2	38.7	○
17		National Route 18 ()	167.4	37.5
BR			↓	↑		Length - 370m Seki River crossing
BR			↓	↑		Length - 370m Seki River crossing		Myōkō	Niigata
18		National Route 18 () Pref. Route 187 (Ikenotaira Myōkōkōgen Route)	172.5	32.4
BS			↓	↑	X	Bus Stop closed
SA			179.9	25.0	X	Bus Stop closed
19		National Route 18 ()	184.5	20.4				Jōetsu
BS			↓	↑	X	Bus Stop closed		Jōetsu
19-1/PA		Pref. Route 428 (Nishinoyashinden Arai Route)	191.9	13.0	X	Highway Oasis Bus Stop closed		Myōkō
TN			↓	↑		Length - 1,502m		Myōkō
20		Pref. Route 85 (Jōetsu-Takada Inter Route)	199.0	5.9				Jōetsu
(31-1)		Hokuriku Expressway	204.9	0.0				Jōetsu

There are also 2 snow chain changing areas between Toyota-Iiyama Interchange and Kurohime-Nojiriko Parking Area, and 1 area between Sakaki Interchange and Ueda-Sugadaira Interchange (Fujioka-bound only).

References[]

^ Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Kanto Regional Development Bureau. "Road Timetable". Archived from the original on 5 April 2008. Retrieved 16 April 2008.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ "Expressway Opening Dates". Retrieved 16 April 2008.
^ Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "High Standard Trunk Road Map" (PDF). Archived from the original (pdf) on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
^ "E-NEXCO Opening Schedule". Retrieved 15 April 2008.
^ Japan Civil Engineering Contractors Association. "Construction History of Japan, 1999". Archived from the original on 16 February 2007. Retrieved 16 April 2008.
^ Kyodo (17 December 2020). "Thousand vehicles stranded, 10,000 without electricity after heavy snowfall". The Japan Times. Retrieved 18 December 2020.

External links[]

(in Japanese) East Nippon Expressway Company
(in Japanese) JAF Drive Map

[1] Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Kanto Regional Development Bureau. "Road Timetable". Archived from the original on 5 April 2008. Retrieved 16 April 2008.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[2] "Expressway Opening Dates". Retrieved 16 April 2008.

[3] Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "High Standard Trunk Road Map" (PDF). Archived from the original (pdf) on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 2008-04-13.

[4] "E-NEXCO Opening Schedule". Retrieved 15 April 2008.

[5] Japan Civil Engineering Contractors Association. "Construction History of Japan, 1999". Archived from the original on 16 February 2007. Retrieved 16 April 2008.

[6] Kyodo (17 December 2020). "Thousand vehicles stranded, 10,000 without electricity after heavy snowfall". The Japan Times. Retrieved 18 December 2020.

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show v t Expressways of Japan
East Nippon Expressway Company	C3 Tokyo Gaikan C4/E66 Ken-Ō CA Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line E4 Tōhoku E4A Aomori E4A Hachinohe E5 Dō-Ō E5A Sasson E5A Shiribeshi E6 Jōban E7 Nihonkai-Tōhoku E7/E46 Akita E8 Hokuriku E13 Tōhoku-Chūō E14 Tateyama E17 Kan-etsu E18 Jōshin-etsu E19 Nagano E38/E61 Dōtō E45 Sanriku E46 Kamaishi E48 Yamagata E49 Ban-etsu E50 Kita-Kantō E51 Higashi-Kantō E65 Shin-Kūkō
Central Nippon Expressway Company	C2 Mei-Nikan C3 Tōkai-Kanjō C4 Ken-Ō E1 Tōmei E1 Meishin E1A/E52/E69 Shin-Tōmei E1A Isewangan E1A Shin-Meishin E8 Hokuriku E19/E20/E68 Chūō E19 Nagano E23 Higashi-Meihan E23 Ise E27 Maizuru-Wakasa E41 Tōkai-Hokuriku E42 Kisei E52 Chūbu-Ōdan
West Nippon Expressway Company	E1 Meishin E1A Shin-Meishin E2 San'yō E2A Chūgoku E2A Kanmon Bridge E3 Kyushu E3A Minamikyushu E9 San'in E10/E78 Higashikyushu E10 Miyazaki E11/E32 Tokushima E11 Takamatsu E11/E56 Matsuyama E24 Keinawa E25 Nishi-Meihan E26 Kinki E26/E42 Hanwa E27 Maizuru-Wakasa E29 Harima E32/E56 Kōchi E34 Ōita E34 Nagasaki E35 Nishi-Kyūshū E54 Matsue E58 Okinawa E71 Kansai-Kūkō E73 Okayama E73 Yonago E74 Hamada E74 Hiroshima
Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Expressway Company	E28 Kobe-Awaji-Naruto E30 Seto-Chūō E76 Nishiseto
MLIT	E4A Kamikita E5 Hakodate Shindō E5A Kuromatsunai Shindō E9 San'in Kinki E25 Meihan E29 Tottori E38/E44 Kushiro Sotokan E39 Asahikawa-Monbetsu E41 Nōetsu E41/E86 Noto-Satoyama E45 Hachinohe-Kuji E45 Sanriku E45 Sanriku-kita Jūkan E54 Onomichi E55 Kōchi-Tōbu E55 Tokushima-Nanbu E58 Naha Airport E59 Hakodate-Esashi E60 Obihiro-Hiroo E61 Tokachi-Okhotsk E62 Fukagawa-Rumoi E63 Hidaka E64 Tsugaru E67 Chūbu-Jūkan E69 San-en Nanshin E70 Izu-Jūkan E72 Kitakinki-Toyooka E75 Higashihiroshima-Kure E77 Kyushu Chūō
Urban Expressways	Fukuoka & Kitakyushu Hanshin Hiroshima Nagoya Shuto Tokyo
Prefecture Maintained Routes	E4A Daini-Michinoku E4A Michinoku E80 Abukuma Kōgen E81 Nikkō Utsunomiya E87 Chitahantō E95 Bantan Renraku E97 Ōita Airport