Kan-Etsu Expressway

Infobox_road
highway_name = Kan-Etsu Expressway (関越自動車道)
marker_



length = 245.8 km [cite web| url= http://www.ktr.mlit.go.jp/kyoku/road/jikoku/station/kanetu.html | title= Road Timetable |author= Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Kanto Regional Development Bureau | accessdate= 2008-04-16 ]
established = 1971 [cite web| url= http://www2.tokai.or.jp/stt/road/expwyopn.html | title= Expressway Opening Dates | accessdate= 2008-04-16 ]
first_open =
starting_terminus = Nerima Interchange in Nerima, Tokyo
Tokyo Metropolitan Route 24
cities = Kawagoe, Fujioka, Takasaki, Maebashi, Ojiya
ending_terminus = Nagaoka Junction in Nagaoka, Niigata
The nihongo|Kan-Etsu Expressway|関越自動車道|Kan'etsu Jidōsha-dō is a national expressway in Japan. It is owned and managed by East Nippon Expressway Company.

Naming

nihongo|Kan-Etsu|関越 is the kanji acronym of nihongo|Kantō|関東 and the old nihongo|Echigo Province|越後国 comprising modern-day Niigata Prefecture.

Officially, the Kan-Etsu consists of two routes. Both begin in Tokyo and end in Niigata Prefecture. The Kan-Etsu Expressway Niigata Route consists of the entire Kan-Etsu Expressway from Nerima to Nagaoka, as well as the Hokuriku Expressway beyond Nagaoka to its terminus in the city of Niigata. The Kan-Etsu Expressway Jōetsu Route is concurrent with the Niigata Route until Fujioka Junction, where it branches off as the Jōshin-etsu Expressway and traverses Nagano Prefecture to its terminus in Jōetsu, Niigata. [cite web| url= http://www.mlit.go.jp/road/ir/ir-yosan/h20/s07.pdf | title= High Standard Trunk Road Map |author= Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport | accessdate= 2008-04-13 | format=pdf] The remainder of this article will focus on the Niigata Route section between Nerima and Nagaoka.

Overview

The expressway begins in Nerima Ward in the north of Tokyo; the Kan-etsu is the only national expressway linking Tokyo that does not have a direct connection with the urban Shuto Expressway network. A junction with the Tokyo Gaikan Expressway near the origin links the Kan-etsu with other expressways serving northern parts of the Tokyo urban area. From here the expressway follows a roughly northwesterly course to its terminus in Niigata Prefecture, passing through central areas of Saitama Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture. In Gunma the Kan-etsu provides access to Nagano Prefecture by way of the Jōshin-etsu Expressway at Fujioka Junction, and completion of the Kita-Kantō Expressway in 2011 [cite web| url= http://www.e-nexco.co.jp/open_schedule/kanto/ | title= E-NEXCO Opening Schedule | accessdate= 2008-04-15 ] will facilitate access to Tochigi Prefecture and Ibaraki Prefecture. The mountainous area separating Gunma and Niigata Prefectures is traversed by the Kan-Etsu Tunnel, the longest road tunnel in Japan. [cite web| url= http://www.gel.civil.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/text/example/ex27/ex27.html | title= Kanetsu Tunnel |author= Nagasaki University Geo-Environment Laboratory | accessdate= 2008-04-16 ] The expressway then passes through southern Niigata Prefecture before terminating at a junction with the Hokuriku Expressway in Nagaoka.

The expressway parallels National Route 17 and the Jōetsu Shinkansen of East Japan Railway Company for most of its length.

The first section opened in 1971 and the entire route was opened to traffic in 1985. [cite web| url= http://www.dokokyo.or.jp/data/nenpyo/1985.htm | title= Construction History of Japan, 1985 |author= Japan Civil Engineering Contractors Association | accessdate= 2008-04-16 ] Currently the route is 6 lanes from Ōizumi Junction to Shibukawa-Ikaho Interchange, and all other sections are 4 lanes.

List of interchanges and features

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

References

External links

*ja icon [http://www.e-nexco.co.jp/ East Nippon Expressway Company]