Moriguchi Route

The Moriguchi Route (守口線, Moriguchi-sen), signed as Route 12, is one of the routes of the Hanshin Expressway system serving the Keihanshin area in Kansai, Japan. It travels in a southwest to northeast direction in Osaka and the neighboring city of Moriguchi, from the Loop Route, in the Kita ward of Osaka, to National Route 1 in the city of Moriguichi. The expressway has a total length of 10.8 kilometers (6.7 mi). It was first opened in 1968, but was completed in 1971.

Hanshin Expressway Route 12 Moriguchi Route 阪神高速12号守口線
The Moriguchi Route highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Hanshin Expressway Company, Limited
Length	10.8 km (6.7 mi)
Existed	1968–present
Major junctions
South end	Tenjimbashi Junction [ja] in Kita-ku, Osaka Loop Route
North end	Moriguchi exit/entrance in Moriguchi National Route 1
Location
Country	Japan
Highway system
National highways of Japan Expressways of Japan

Route description

The Moriguchi Route and a tributary of the Yodo River in Miyakojima-ku, Osaka

The Moriguchi Route begins at Tenjimbashi Junction in Kita-ku, Osaka, where it meets the Loop Route. Heading north, it crosses over National Route 1 near Minami-morimachi Station. The highway then curves to the northeast after an interchange with Ōgimachi-dōri. It then crosses into the Miyakojima ward, where it begins closely paralleling the south bank of the Yodo River, a path the expressway will follow to its northern terminus. Shortly after crossing into another ward, Asahi-ku, the expressway has a junction with the Morishoji ramps that connect the expressway to National Route 163.^[1] A "mini" parking area with toilets and vending machines is placed on the entrance ramp from National Route 163.^[2]

The expressway then has a relatively long stretch of road without any junctions. During this stretch the expressway crosses into the city of Moriguchi. Near the expressway's northern end the highway has junctions with multiple roads that on a short stretch of road. The most notable of these roadways are the Kinki Expressway and National Route 1, the later of which merges into the expressway. This marks the northern terminus of the Moriguchi Route.^[1]

History

Maintenance and construction of the existing and new routes of the Hanshin Expressway began in 1967 in preparation for the Expo '70, a world's fair held in Suita, Osaka, between 15 March and 13 September 1970. The first section of the project came to be known as the Moriguchi Route and opened in 1968.^[3] Construction of the Moriguchi Route was completed in 1971 after the completion of a 5.6-kilometer-long (3.5 mi) section of the expressway.^[4] A further addition was made to the expressway in 2014 when, in a series of openings, it was linked to the Kinki Expressway at Moriguchi Junction.^[5]

List of interchanges

The entire expressway lies within Osaka Prefecture.

Location	km[6]	mi	Exit	Name	Destinations	Notes
Osaka	0.0	0.0	–	Nakanoshima	Loop Route	Southern terminus
	0.6	0.37	12-01	Minamimorimachi	National Route 1 (Sonezaki-dōri) – Higashitenma, Umeda-shinmichi	Southbound exit and entrance
	1.0	0.62	12-02	Ōgimachi	Ōgimachi-dōri – Ōgimachi, Osaka Station	Northbound exit and entrance
	1.6	0.99	12-03	Nagara	Tenmabashi-suji – Tenjimbashisuji Rokuchōme, Nagarahigashi, Miyakojimahondōri	Northbound exit, southbound entrance
	4.1	2.5	12-05	Miyakoji	Osaka-Akakawa-Tennōji Road	Southbound entrance only
	4.7	2.9	12-06	Shirokita	Shirokita-suji – Suita, Kami-Shinjō, Noe	Northbound exit only
	6.4	4.0	12-07	Morishoji	National Route 163	Northbound exit, southbound entrance; entrance ramp includes the Mini Morishoji Parking Area
Moriguchi	10.2	6.3	12-08	Moriguchi	Osaka Prefecture Route 155
	10.6	6.6	–	Moriguchi	Kinki Expressway – to Meishin Expressway, Daini Keihan Expressway, Kadoma, Suita
	10.8	6.7	12-09	Moriguchi	National Route 1 (Neyagawa Bypass)	Northern terminus; highway continues as the Neyagawa Bypass
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access       Route transition

See also

• Japan portal
• Roads portal