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This is a warning from NEXCO EAST Hokkaido Regional Head Office (Atsubetsu-ku, Sapporo).

1. The current case

　9月14日（土）17時過ぎに、札幌市内から新千歳空港に向かう高速バスで車両火災が発生し、夕方の交通量が多くなる時間帯にかけて、道央自動車道（上り線・千歳方面）で約7時間通行止めとなり、高速道路をご利用される予定のお客さまには大変ご迷惑をおかけしました。
　当該対応としまして、消防機関の消火活動、発災した車両のレッカー作業、燃料漏れによる路面の広範囲な清掃作業等が必要となったため、作業に長時間を要しました。

2. Response to "Road closure due to vehicle fire"

When a vehicle fire occurs on Expressway and the expressway is closed, this has a significant social impact, so we ask related organizations to thoroughly maintain and inspect vehicles on a daily basis. We also display information on road information boards to raise awareness.

3. Social impacts of vehicle fires on Expressway

Depending on where a vehicle fire occurs on Expressway, it can have a severe impact on road structures and the surrounding area.
If a disaster occurs on an viaduct, the heat and burnt structures will also affect the general roads that run underneath the viaduct.
Furthermore, if a fire occurs inside a tunnel, the closed space will trap heat and fill the tunnel with smoke, significantly affecting vehicles behind. High heat can also affect walls and structures, resulting in road closures and long recovery times, which can have a major impact on the logistics, tourism, and daily life of everyone in Hokkaido.

4. Past cases

(1) Incident on Do-O Expressway

Just after noon on Monday, September 25, 2023, a tire burst on a large truck on Do-O Expressway (Out-bound for Sapporo) and caught fire, causing a road closure for nearly five hours. Because the fire occurred on an viaduct, lane restrictions were also put into place on the Sapporo New Road, which runs parallel to the viaduct, causing traffic congestion on the general roads as well.

(2) Incident on Doto Expressway

In the morning of Friday, November 17, 2023, on Doto Expressway (In-bound, towards Sapporo), a tire burst on a large truck, causing it to go off the road and catch fire, resulting in the truck being completely burned down at a waiting area just after passing through Shimukappu Tunnel.