The is a tolled

expressway Expressway may refer to: * Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic. * Limited-access road, a lower grade of highway or arterial road. *Expressway, the fictional s ...

that connects Hyōgo and

Tokushima is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 728,633 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,146 km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the north, E ...

prefectures in Japan by crossings of the Akashi Strait and Naruto Strait. Built between 1970 and 1998, it is one of the three routes of the

Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Expressway Company The , abbreviated as in Japanese or HSBE in English, operates the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto, Nishiseto, and Seto-Chūō expressways and their respective bridges between the islands of Honshu and Shikoku, Japan. It is headquartered in Chūō-ku, Kōb ...

connecting

Honshū , 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 separa ...

and Shikoku islands. The route is signed E28 under Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's "2016 Proposal for Realization of Expressway Numbering."

Route description

The expressway is long with of that stretch consisting of bridges, chiefly the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge and

Ōnaruto Bridge The is a suspension bridge on the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway connecting Minamiawaji, Hyogo on Awaji Island with Naruto, Tokushima on Ōge Island, Japan. Completed in 1985, it has a main span of . Although it is one of the largest bridges ...

. The expressway has four lanes along the entire route from

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

to Naruto in Tokushima, with an exception along the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge, were it has six lanes. The speed limit is 70 km/h between Awajishima-minami Interchange and Naruto-kita Interchange, 100 km/h between Awaji Interchange and Seidan-Mihara Interchange as well as between Kobe-Nishi Interchange and Tarumi Junction. The remainder of the expressway has a speed limit set at 80 km/h.

History

On 8 June 1985 the first sections of the expressway opened. These were between Tsuna-Ichinomiya Interchange and Sumoto Interchange and between Naruto-kita Interchange and the now defunct Seidan Interchange. The latter of the two sections includes the Ōnaruto Bridge. On 23 May 1987, the road was extended south from Naruto-kita Interchange to its southern terminus at Naruto Interchange. Next, on 8 October 1987, the highway between Sumoto IC and Seidan-Mihara Interchange was opened. The opening of Seidan-Mihara Interchange necessitated the closure of Seidan Interchange. On 5 April 1998 the highway between Kobe-Nishi Interchange and Tsuna-Ichinomiya Interchange was opened with the completion of the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge. The most recent development on the expressway came on 17 February 2018, when the ETC-only Awajishima-chuo Smart Interchange was opened.

Junction list

TB= Toll booth, SA= Service Area, PA= Parking Area , colspan="8" style="text-align: center;", Through to E2 Expressway (Japan)

San'yō Expressway , colspan="8" style="text-align: center;", Through to /

References

External links

Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Expressway Company Limited: E28 KOBE-AWAJI-NARUTO EXPWY
{{Expressways of Japan Expressways in Japan Roads in Hyōgo Prefecture Roads in Tokushima Prefecture

Route description

History

Junction list

See also

References

External links