is a major

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

on the island and

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

in northern

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The highway begins at an intersection with National Routes 279 and 278 in

Hakodate is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 279,851 with 143,221 households, and a population density of 412.8 ...

. It travels north across the southern half of the island, traveling through

Otaru is a city and port in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan, northwest of Sapporo. The city faces Ishikari Bay and the Sea of Japan, and has long served as the main port of the bay. With its many historical buildings, Otaru is a popular to ...

where it curves to the east toward its endpoint at an intersection with National Route 12 in

Chūō-ku, Sapporo is one of the ten wards in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. Chūō-ku means "central ward" in Japanese. City administration and entertainment facilities are centred in this ward. History During Meiji Period, Sousei river, precursor of Susukino distric ...

Route description

Overlapping sections

*In Oshamanbe, from Kunnui intersection to Asahihama intersection: Route 230 *From Kutchan (North-4 West-1 intersection) to Kyōwa (Kunitomi intersection): Route 276 *From Yoichi (Yoichi Station intersection) to Otaru (Inaho 2-18 intersection): Route 229

Municipalities passed through

Oshima Subprefecture is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. As of 2004 it had a population of 456,621 and an area of 3,715.38 km2. Hakodate Airport is located in the City of Hakodate. Geography The subprefecture is located on the Oshima Penins ...

- Nanae -

Mori Mori is a Japanese and Italian surname, and also a Persian pet name for Morteza. It is also the name of two clans in Japan, and one clan in India. Italian surname *Barbara Mori, Uruguayan-Mexican actress * Camilo Mori, Chilean painter * Cesare ...

- Yakumo - Oshamanbe *

Shiribeshi Subprefecture is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. The subprefecture's capital is Kutchan. As of July 31, 2004, the estimated population was 256,184 and the area was 4,305.65 km2. Geography Municipalities Mergers History ...

** Kuromatsunai - Rankoshi -

Niseko Niseko ( ja, ニセコ町, , ) is a town located in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. To Japanese people, Niseko principally refers to a mountain range and a municipal area. However, overseas the name has come to refer to a wider area o ...

Kyōwa was a after '' Kansei'' and before ''Bunka.'' This period spanned the years from February 1801 through February 1804.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kyōwa''" ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ''see'Deu ...

Niki __NOTOC__ Niki may refer to: People * Niki (given name) * NIKI (singer), Indonesian singer and songwriter * Niki DeMar, American singer * Niki Etsuko (1928–1986), Japanese author of mystery fiction Places * Niki, Hokkaido, a town in Japan * Ni ...

- Yoichi -

* Ishikari Subprefecture **

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

History

National Route 5 traces its origin to the , a road designed by

Horace Capron Horace Capron (August 31, 1804 – February 22, 1885) was an American businessman and agriculturalist, a founder of Laurel, Maryland, a Union officer in the American Civil War, the United States Secretary of Agriculture under U.S. Presiden ...

, in 1872. Capron was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

advisor to the Hokkaido Development Commission who was paid to assist in the development of Sapporo as a

planned city A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

. The Sapporo Hondō connected Sapporo to Hakodate at the southern end of the Hokkaido where sea connections to the main island of Japan,

Honshu , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separ ...

, were located. The Sapporo Hondō was completed in 1877. On 4 December 1952, the

Cabinet of Japan The is the chief executive body of the government of Japan. It consists of the prime minister, who is appointed by the emperor after being designated by the National Diet, and up to nineteen other members, called Ministers of State. The prime ...

designated the Sapporo Hondō as First Class National Highway 5. On 1 April 1965, it was reclassified as National Route 5.

Gallery

File:Route5-JP-Origin-01.jpg, National Route 5's origin point and southern terminus in

File:北海道道1176号新函館北斗停車場七飯線・国道5号交点（国道5号起点（函館）側から）.jpg, National Route 5 in Nanae near

Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station is a railway station on the Hakodate Main Line in Hokuto, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). The station – rebuilt and very extensively enlarged to serve from March 2016 as the northern terminal of the new ...

File:稲穂トンネル - panoramio.jpg, Inaho Tunnel carries National Route 5 under Inaho Pass File:国道5号線 - panoramio (1).jpg, National Route 5 in

File:Hokkaido Zero Milestone.JPG, The origin point of Hokkaido's roads in

, the northern terminus of National Route 5 lies 350 meters to the north of the marker

Route description

Overlapping sections

Municipalities passed through

History

Gallery

Major junctions

See also

References

External links