TheTōmei Expressway (東名高速道路,Tōmei Kōsoku Dōro) is a nationalexpressway on the island ofHonshū inJapan. It is operated byCentral Nippon Expressway Company. The expressway is designated asE1 under the "2016 Proposal for Realization of Expressway Numbering", because it parallelsNational Route 1.^[4] It is a part of theAsian Highway Network.AH1

Tōmei Expressway
東名高速道路
Tōmei Expressway in red
Route information
Part ofAH1
Length	346.8 km[3] (215.5 mi)
Existed	1968[1][2]–present
Major junctions
From	Tokyo Interchange inSetagaya, Tokyo Shuto ExpresswayShibuya Route Tokyo Metropolitan Route 311
To	Komaki Interchange inKomaki, Aichi Meishin Expressway Nagoya ExpresswayKomaki Route National Route 41
Location
Country	Japan
Major cities	Kawasaki,Yokohama,Atsugi,Fuji,Shizuoka,Hamamatsu,Toyokawa,Toyota,Nagoya,Kasugai
Highway system
National highways of Japan Expressways of Japan

The word Tōmei is anacronym consisting of twokanji characters. The first character refers toTokyo (東京) and the second refers toNagoya (名古屋), which are the two major urban areas linked by the expressway.

Officially the expressway is designated as the First Tōkai Expressway.^[5] A second Tōkai Expressway (operating as theShin-Tōmei Expressway) is under construction parallel to the existing route, and is intended to alleviate congestion problems^[6] in the near term.

The expressway is also a part of RouteAH1 of theAsian Highway Network.^[7][8]

The Tōmei Expressway is an important roadway linking Tokyo and Nagoya. It is the most heavily travelled roadway operated by Central Nippon Expressway Company, with some sections used by more than 100,000 vehicles a day.^[6]

The first sections were opened to traffic in 1968 and the entire route was completed in 1969.^[1]

From the origin in western Tokyo the expressway follows a westerly route throughKanagawa Prefecture, parallelingNational Route 246 and passing to the north ofYokohama. The route continues west intoShizuoka Prefecture, passing to the south ofMount Fuji and along the coastline ofSuruga Bay, parallelingNational Route 1 and the historicTōkaidō highway before reaching the city ofShizuoka. The expressway continues west, passingLake Hamana in western Shizuoka Prefecture, and crosses intoAichi Prefecture. The expressway then heads northwest, passing to the east of the city of Nagoya and meeting the terminus of theChūō Expressway before terminating at an interchange in the city ofKomaki to the north of Nagoya. Although the Tōmei Expressway ends at this point, the roadway continues as theMeishin Expressway towardsKyoto,Osaka, andKobe.

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

• Sections with left and right routes formerly carried 2 lanes of traffic in each direction. An additional roadway (carrying 3 lanes of traffic in one direction only) has been constructed parallel to the existing 4 lanes to alleviate congestion. The original 4 lanes are then converted for the use of traffic in the opposite direction.

• Shin-Tōmei Expressway
• Asian Highway Network
• Central Nippon Expressway Company
• Expressways of Japan

• Central Nippon Expressway Company

35°35′40″N139°34′24″E / 35.594315°N 139.573410°E /35.594315; 139.573410