is a Japanese national highway running on the islands of

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...

and

Shikoku is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...

. The highway originates at a junction with Routes 10 and 210 in Ōita, Ōita and terminates at a junction with Route 56 in

Susaki, Kōchi 270px, Susaki City Hall 270px, Aerial view of Susaki city center 270px, Yokonami-Kuroshio coast is a city located in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 20‚429 in 10672 households and a population density of ...

. The route is interrupted between Saganoseki area of Ōita, Ōita (where it joins with Route 217) and

Ikata, Ehime is a small peninsula town located in Nishiuwa District, Ehime Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 8,497 in 15638 households and a population density of 90 persons per km². The total area of the town is Following a rec ...

because of the

Hōyo Strait The is the strait at the narrowest part of the Bungo Channel in 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 ...

, and traffic between the two islands is carried by a

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

between the two towns. Though the gap is less than 15 km at the strait's narrowest point, there are currently no plans to bridge the gap.

History

Route 197 was originally designated on 18 May 1953 from Matsuyama to Kōchi. This was redesignated as Route 56 on 1 April 1963.

Route description

The road is affectionately nicknamed "Melody Line". As a result, it gained two

musical road A musical road is a road, or section of a road, which when driven over causes a tactile vibration and audible rumbling that can be felt through the wheels and body of the vehicle. This rumbling is heard within the car as well as the surroundin ...

segments located in Ikata, the first of which was placed on the road to celebrate its anniversary of being built in 2011, so the road could literally have a "melody". The second segment was not completed until 2018. Two Japanese folk songs can be heard, one in each direction, when these short segments of the road are driven over. The songs are created by grooves in the roadway (

rumble strip Rumble strips (also known as sleeper lines or alert strips) are a road safety feature to alert inattentive drivers of potential danger, by causing a tactile vibration and audible rumbling transmitted through the wheels into the vehicle interior. ...

s) arranged to form melodies.

References

197 Year 197 ( CXCVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Magius and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 950 '' Ab urbe con ...

Roads in Ehime Prefecture Roads in Kōchi Prefecture Roads in Ōita Prefecture Musical roads in Japan {{Japan-road-stub