Chūō Expressway

Chūō Expressway
Chūō Expressway
中央自動車道
Route information
Length	366.8 km (227.9 mi) Main Route - 344.9 km; Kawaguchiko Route - 21.9 km
Existed	1967–present
Major junctions
From	Takaido Interchange in Suginami, Tokyo; Shuto Expressway Shinjuku Route; Tokyo Metropolitan Route 14
To	Komaki Junction in Komaki, Aichi; Tōmei Expressway; Kawaguchiko Interchange in Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi; Higashifuji-goko Road; National Route 139
Location
Country	Japan
Major cities	Hachiōji, Sagamihara, Ōtsuki, Kōfu, Suwa, Okaya, Iida, Nakatsugawa, Tajimi, Kasugai
Highway system
	National highways of Japan; Expressways of Japan;

The Chūō Expressway (中央自動車道, Chūō Jidōsha-dō, lit. Central Motorway, formerly Chūō Kōsoku-dōro (中央高速道路) until 1972) is a national expressway in Japan. It is owned and operated by NEXCO Central.

Naming

Officially the expressway is designated as the Chūō Expressway Nishinomiya Route (from Takaido Interchange to Komaki Junction), the Chūō Expressway Nagano Route (from Takaido Interchange to Okaya Junction), and the Chūō Expressway Fujiyoshida Route (from Takaido Interchange through Ōtsuki Junction to Kawaguchiko Interchange, this section being a branch of the main route).^[4] These designations do not appear on any signage as all sections are signed simply as the Chūō Expressway.

Overview

The Chūō Expressway is a major roadway connecting the greater Tokyo and Nagoya urban areas, a role also shared by the Tōmei Expressway. While the Tōmei Expressway follows a coastal route, the Chūō Expressway follows an inland route through the mountainous regions of Kanagawa, Yamanashi, Nagano, and Gifu Prefectures, its highest point (1,015 meters above sea level) being at 157.3 km point sandwiched between the Yatsugatake Mountains and Southern Japanese Alps. In addition, a branch of the expressway in Yamanashi Prefecture known as the Kawaguchiko Route facilitates access to Mount Fuji and the Fuji Five Lakes area.

The expressway is 4 lanes for its entire length except for the section between Uenohara Interchange and Ōtuski Junction, which is 6 to 7 lanes. This section was originally 4 lanes as well, however increasing traffic volume led to the construction of a new parallel roadway for Uenohara-bound traffic, with the original 4 lanes of roadway being converted for the use of Ōtsuki-bound traffic only.

Tolls on the section from Takaido Interchange to Hachiōji Interchange are charged at a flat rate. As of October 2024, the toll on this section is 1000 yen for a regular passenger car. Tolls on all other sections of the expressway are assessed according to distance travelled in the same manner as most other national expressways.^[5] Also, tolls on the section from Sonohara Interchange to Nakatsugawa Interchange are assessed at 1.6 times the normal rate to account for the high cost of constructing the Enasan Tunnel. Vehicles carrying dangerous materials are forbidden from using this tunnel and must use alternate routes.

History

The Chūō Expressway affords many fine views of Mount Fuji.

Near Futaba Junction

Chūō Expressway in Fujimi, Nagano

December 15, 1967 - Chōfu Interchange - Hachiōji Interchange section opened.
December 20, 1968 - Hachiōji Interchange - Sagamiko Interchange section opened.
March 17, 1969 - Sagamiko Interchange - Kawaguchiko Interchange section opened.
October 5, 1972 - Tajimi Interchange - Komaki Junction section opened, connecting with the Tōmei Expressway.
September 6, 1973 - Mizunami Interchange - Tajimi Interchange section opened.
March 5, 1975 - Nakatsugawa Interchange - Mizunami Interchange section opened.
August 23, 1975 - Komagane Interchange - Nakatsugawa Interchange section opened (Enasan Tunnel opened with 2 lanes of traffic only).
May 18, 1976 - Takaido Interchange - Chōfu Interchange section opened.
September 18, 1976 - Ihoku Interchange - Komagane Interchange section opened.
December 19, 1976 - Nirasaki Interchange - Kobuchisawa Interchange section opened.
December 20, 1977 - Ōtsuki Junction - Katsunuma Interchange section opened.
November 16, 1979 - Komaki-higashi Interchange opened.
March 26, 1980 - Kōfu-Shōwa Interchange - Nirasaki Interchange section opened.
March 30, 1981 - Kobuchisawa Interchange - Ihoku Interchange section opened.
November 10, 1982 - Katsunuma Interchange - Kōfu-Shōwa Interchange section opened, completing the entire route.
November, 1984 - Tsuru Interchange opened.
March 25, 1986 - Okaya Junction - Okaya Interchange section opened.
August 28, 1986 - Connection to Higashifuji-goko Road at Kawaguchiko Interchange is completed.
September 27, 1986 - Nagasaka Interchange opened.
March 5, 1988 - Okaya Junction - Okaya Interchange section is transferred to the Nagano Expressway.
September 27, 1989 - Uenohara Interchange opened.
March 25, 1992 - Sonohara Interchange opened.
January, 1993 - Renovation of Dangōzaka Service Area completed. The Komaki-bound service area is moved 2 km closer to Tokyo, while the Tokyo-bound service area is moved to the former site of the Komaki-bound service area.
April 14, 1995 - Inagi Interchange opened.
March 24, 2002 - Futaba Junction is opened, connecting with the Chūbu-Ōdan Expressway.
March 16, 2003 - Reconstruction of the Uenohara Interchange - Ōtsuki Junction section is completed (additional lanes added, areas with sharp curves abandoned, Tokyo-bound Dangōzaka Service Area renovated, area near Ōtsuki Junction susceptible to traffic weaving eliminated).
March 19, 2005 - Toki Junction is opened, connecting with the Tōkai-Kanjō Expressway.
October 1, 2005 - Expressway management is transferred from Japan Highway Public Corporation to Central Nippon Expressway Company as a result of the privatization of the national expressway network.
October 1, 2006 - Futaba Smart Interchange opened.
June 23, 2007 - Hachiōji Junction is opened, connecting with the Ken-Ō Expressway.
December 2, 2012 - Sasago Tunnel collapses, killing nine people.^[6]

List of interchanges and features

IC - interchange, SIC - smart interchange, JCT - junction, SA - service area, PA - parking area, BS - bus stop, TN - tunnel, TB - toll gate

Main Route

No.	Name	Connections	Dist. from Origin	Bus Stop	Notes	Speed Limit	Location
Through to Shuto Expressway Shinjuku Route
1	Takaido IC	Met. Route 14 (Shinjuku Kunitachi Route) (Tōhachi Road)	0.0		Tokyo-bound exit only	60 km/h	Suginami	Tokyo
<2>	Chūō JCT	Tokyo Gaikan Expressway			Planned		Mitaka
BS	Mitaka Bus Stop		4.0	○
TB	Mitaka Toll Gate		4.0		Komaki-bound only
TB	Mitaka Toll Gate		4.0		Komaki-bound only	80 km/h
BS	Jindaiji Bus Stop		6.0	○			Chōfu
3	Chōfu IC	National Route 20 (Kōshū Kaidō)	7.7				Chōfu
3-1	Inagi IC	Met. Route 9 (Kawasaki Fuchū Route)	10.0		Komaki-bound exit, Takaido-bound entrance only		Fuchū
3-1	Inagi IC	Met. Route 9 (Kawasaki Fuchū Route)	10.0		Komaki-bound exit, Takaido-bound entrance only	100 km/h
BS	Fuchū Bus Stop/ SIC	Met. Route 9 (Kawasaki Fuchū Route)	11.5	○	SIC: Takaido-bound exit, Komaki-bound entrance only
4	Kunitachi-Fuchū IC	National Route 20 (Hino Bypass)	17.0				Kunitachi
BS	Hino Bus Stop		20.0	○			Hino
PA	Ishikawa PA		23.3 23.5		Takaido-bound Komaki-bound		Hachiōji
5-1	Hachiōji No.1 Exit	National Route 16 (Hachiōji Bypass)	25.8		Komaki-bound only
5-2	Hachiōji No.2 Exit	National Route 16			Komaki-bound only
5 TB 5	Hachiōji IC Hachiōji Toll Gate Hachiōji Exit	National Route 16			Exit is Takaido-bound only
BS	Motohachiōji Bus Stop		31.0	○		80 km/h
-	Motohachiōji IC	Met. Route 61 (Yamada Miyanomae Route)	33.2		open in 2021
6	Hachiōji JCT	Ken-Ō Expressway	36.0
7	Sagamiko Higashi Exit	National Route 20	42.4		Komaki-bound only		Sagamihara	Kanagawa
BS	Sagamiko Bus Stop		42.9	○
8	Sagamiko IC	National Route 20	45.4
PA	Fujino PA		46.5
9	Uenohara IC	Pref. Route 35 (Yokkaichiba Uenohara Route)	50.3	○			Uenohara	Yamanashi
SA	Dangōzaka SA/ Nodajiri Bus Stop		55.6		Komaki-bound
SA	Dangōzaka SA/ Nodajiri Bus Stop		57.7	○	Takaido-bound
BS	Saruhashi Bus Stop		65.1	○			Ōtsuki
10	Ōtsuki IC	National Route 20	70.4
11	Ōtsuki JCT	Chūō Expressway (Kawaguchiko Route)	71.4
BS	Magi Bus Stop		72.8	○
PA	Hatsukari PA		74.8
BS	Sasago Bus Stop		78.7	○
BS	Sasago Bus Stop		78.7	○		70 km/h
BS	Kai-Yamato Bus Stop		86.4	○			Kōshū
12	Katsunuma IC	National Route 20 (Katsunuma Bypass)	90.5
12	Katsunuma IC	National Route 20 (Katsunuma Bypass)	90.5			80 km/h
PA	Shakadō PA		92.8	○
PA	Shakadō PA		92.8	○			Fuefuki
BS	Kai-Ichinomiya Bus Stop		95.2	○
13	Ichinomiya-Misaka IC	National Route 137	96.6
BS	Misaka Bus Stop		98.7	○
13-1	Fuefuki-Yatsushiro SIC/ Yatsushiro Bus Stop	Pref. Route 22 (Kōfu Fuefuki Route) Pref. Route 313 (Fujinuta Isawa Route)	100.6	○
PA	Sakaigawa PA		104.2 104.5	○	Takaido-bound Komaki-bound
14	Kōfu-minami IC	National Route 358	106.2	○			Kōfu
-	Kōfu Chūō SIC		108.5		open in 2019		Kōfu
BS	Shōwa Bus Stop		112.3	○			Shōwa
15	Kōfu-Shōwa IC	National Route 20 (Kōfu Bypass)	113.8				Shōwa
15-1	Futaba SA/ SIC/ Futaba-higashi Bus Stop	Pref. Route 6 (Kōfu Nirasaki Route) Pref. Route 25 (Kai Chūō Route)	118.5	○	SIC: Komaki-bound exit, Takaido-bound entrance only		Kai
15-2	Futaba JCT	Chūbu-Ōdan Expressway	120.4
-	Kai IC/ JCT	National Route 20 (Shin-Yamanashi ring road) (planned) Pref. Route 616 (Shimokamijō Miyakubo Emidō Route)			Planned
16	Nirasaki IC	Pref. Route 27 (Nirasaki Shōsenkyō Route)	125.0				Nirasaki
BS	Akeno Bus Stop		129.5	○			Hokuto
17	Sutama IC	National Route 141	132.0
17	Sutama IC	National Route 141	132.0			70 km/h
BS	Nagasaka-Takane Bus Stop		140.1	○
17-1	Nagasaka IC	Pref. Route 32 (Nagasaka Takane Route)	140.7
17-1	Nagasaka IC	Pref. Route 32 (Nagasaka Takane Route)	140.7			80 km/h
-	Nagasaka JCT	Chūbu-Ōdan Expressway (Planned)			Planned
PA	Yatsugatake PA		143.1	○
18	Kobuchisawa IC	Pref. Route 11 (Hokuto Fujimi Route)	148.9				Fujimi	Nagano
BS	Fujimi Bus Stop		157.7	○
19	Suwa-minami IC	Pref. Route 425 (Haraizawa Fujimi Route) Pref. Route 90 (Suwa-minami Inter Route)	161.5
PA	Chūōdō-Hara PA		163.8	○	Komaki-bound		Hara
PA	Chūōdō-Hara PA		164.6		Takaido-bound		Hara
BS	Chino Bus Stop		169.9	○			Chino
20	Suwa IC	National Route 20 (Suwa Bypass)	172.6				Suwa
BS	Aruga Bus Stop		177.3	○
SA	Suwako SA		178.5
SA	Suwako SA		178.5				Okaya
21	Okaya JCT	Nagano Expressway	182.7		From Okaya JCT to Komaki JCT the Chūō Expressway is signed "E19"
BS	Kawagishi Bus Stop		186.0	○
PA	Tatsuno PA		192.7	○			Tatsuno
22	Ihoku IC	National Route 153	196.7	○			Tatsuno
22	Ihoku IC	National Route 153	196.7	○			Minowa
BS	Minowa Bus Stop		200.5	○			Minowa
23	Ina IC	Pref. Route 476 (Ina Inter Nishiminowa Route) Pref. Route 87 (Ina Inter Route)	206.2	○			Minamiminowa
23	Ina IC		206.2	○			Ina
23-1	Ogurogawa PA/ SIC		209.1
BS	Nishiharuchika Bus Stop		212.2	○
BS	Miyada Bus Stop		217.4	○			Miyada
24	Komagane IC	Pref. Route 75 (Komagane Komagatake Kōen Route)	221.4	○			Komagane
24-1	Komagatake SA/ SIC		224.7				Komagane
BS	Iijima Bus Stop		228.7	○			Iijima
25	Matsukawa IC	Pref. Route 15 (Iijima Iida Route) Pref. Route 59 (Matsukawa Inter Ōshika Route)	236.7	○			Matsukawa
BS	Takamori Bus Stop		243.1	○			Takamori
PA	Zakōji PA		245.3				Iida
BS	Kamiiida Bus Stop		248.9	○
26	Iida IC/ Igara Bus Stop	National Route 153 (Iida Bypass)	252.2	○
26-1	Iida-Yamamoto IC	San-en Nanshin Expressway	257.4
PA	Achi PA/ Komaba Bus Stop		259.8	○			Achi
PA	Achi PA/ Komaba Bus Stop		259.8	○		70 km/h
26-1	Sonohara IC	Pref. Route 89 (Sonohara Inter Route) Pref. Route 477 (Fujimidai Kōen Route)	267.0	○	Takaido-bound exit, Komaki-bound entrance only
TN	Enasan Tunnel		271.0		Length - 8,649 m, dangerous goods forbidden
TN	Enasan Tunnel		271.0		Length - 8,649 m, dangerous goods forbidden		Nakatsugawa	Gifu
PA	Misaka PA/ Magome Bus Stop		278.9	○		80 km/h
27	Nakatsugawa IC	National Route 19	288.9	○
SA	Enakyō SA		294.4				Ena
28	Ena IC	Pref. Route 68 (Ena Shirakawa Route)	298.3	○			Ena
PA	Byōbuzan PA		310.2 311.4		Takaido-bound Komaki-bound		Mizunami
BS	Mizunami-Tentoku Bus Stop		314.8	○
29	Mizunami IC	Pref. Route 47 (Mizunami Inter Route)	316.4
30	Toki IC	National Route 21	320.9	○			Toki
30-1	Toki JCT	Tōkai-Kanjō Expressway	323.4				Toki
PA	Kokeizan PA		327.9		Takaido-bound only		Tajimi
31	Tajimi IC	National Route 248	329.7	○			Tajimi
PA	Utsutsutōge PA		336.2				Kasugai	Aichi
32	Komaki-higashi IC	Pref. Route 49 (Kasugai Inuyama Route)	337.8				Komaki
BS	Tōkadai Bus Stop		343.0	○
23	Komaki JCT	Tōmei Expressway	344.9

Changing areas for snow chains
- Achi PA - Sonohara IC
- Hatsukari PA - Katsunuma IC
- Sutama IC - Nagasaka IC (Komaki-bound)
- Yatsugatake PA - Kobuchisawa IC (Two areas Komaki-bound)
- Kobuchisawa IC - Suwa-minami IC
- Okaya JCT - Tatsuno PA

Kawaguchiko Route

No.	Name	Connections	Dist. from Takaido IC	Bus Stop	Notes	Location (all in Yamanashi)
11	Ōtsuki JCT	Chūō Expressway	71.4			Ōtsuki
BS	Ogatayama Bus Stop		73.2	○		Tsuru
1	Tsuru IC	Pref. Route 705 (Takahatake Yamura Teishajō Route) Pref. Route 40 (Tsuru Inter Route)	77.6	○	Fujiyoshida-bound exit, Ōtsuki-bound entrance only
PA	Yamura PA		79.4 79.7		Ōtsuki-bound Fujiyoshida-bound
BS	Nishikatsura Bus Stop		84.7	○		Nishikatsura
BS	Shimoyoshida Bus Stop		89.8	○		Fujiyoshida
1-1	Fujiyoshida-Nishikatsura SIC	Pref. Route 718 (Fujiyoshida Nishikatsura Route)	93.9			Fujiyoshida
2	Kawaguchiko IC	National Route 139	93.9		Fujiyoshida-bound exit, Ōtsuki-bound entrance only	Fujikawaguchiko
Through to Higashifuji-goko Road

The speed limit on the Kawaguchiko Route is 80 km/h.
To prevent confusion with the main route, kilometer markers along the Kawaguchiko Route show the distance from Takaido Interchange plus 300 (the marker at Ōtsuki Junction is 371.4 while the marker at Kawaguchiko Interchange is 393.9)

In popular culture

The Chūō Expressway features prominently in the song "Chūō Freeway" (中央フリーウェイ) by Yumi Matsutoya, from the 1976 studio album The 14th Moon [ja]. The song describes the scenery along the highway in the vicinity of Fuchū, Tokyo.

References

^ Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "History of Tokyo's 3 Ring Roads". Archived from the original on 2008-04-02. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
^ Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "Road Timetable". Archived from the original on 2004-06-04. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
^ ^a ^b Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "Road Timetable". Archived from the original on 2004-06-04. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
^ Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "High Standard Trunk Road Map" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-20. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
^ "E-NEXCO Drive Plaza Route Search". Retrieved 2008-04-13.
^ "At least three dead after Japan tunnel collapse: TV". Yahoo! Sports. Reuters. 2012-12-02. Retrieved 2012-12-02.

External links

Central Nippon Expressway Company Archived 2008-12-09 at the Wayback Machine

[1] Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "History of Tokyo's 3 Ring Roads". Archived from the original on 2008-04-02. Retrieved 2008-04-17.

[2] Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "Road Timetable". Archived from the original on 2004-06-04. Retrieved 2008-04-17.

[kawa-3] Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "Road Timetable". Archived from the original on 2004-06-04. Retrieved 2008-04-17.

[gov-4] Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. "High Standard Trunk Road Map" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-20. Retrieved 2008-04-13.

[5] "E-NEXCO Drive Plaza Route Search". Retrieved 2008-04-13.

[6] "At least three dead after Japan tunnel collapse: TV". Yahoo! Sports. Reuters. 2012-12-02. Retrieved 2012-12-02.

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