About accusation of road law Article 47 Clause 2 violator (excess weight vehicle)

PDF version [PDF: 377KB]

We would like to announce that the Japan Expressway Holding and Debt Repayment Corporation (​hereinafter referred to as the "Expressway Corporation") and the Niigata Regional Head Office of East Nippon Expressway Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "NEXCO East Japan") (hereinafter referred to as ​the "NEXCO EAST") have jointly filed the following complaint to the Niigata Prefectural Police Headquarters, Traffic Regional Head Office, Expressway Traffic Police Unit on November 20, 2024.

1. Background

On June 18th, 2024, a driver was charged with violating Article 47 Paragraph 2 of the Road Act by allowing a large trailer truck to pass at Itoigawa Interchange (IC) on the E8 Hokuriku Expressway, under Article 104 Paragraph 1 of the same Act, and the operating company in question, Shoei Unyu Co., Ltd. (Taketa City, Oita Prefecture, Representative: Kai Toshiaki), was charged with violating Article 107 of the same Act, with the Niigata Prefectural Police Headquarters Traffic Department Expressway Traffic Police Unit.
We believe that this violation was extremely serious, as not only was a 54.90-ton large trailer truck allowed to pass without permission, which far exceeds the general gross vehicle weight limit of 25.00 tons set by the Vehicle Restrictions Ordinance, but the axle weight and vehicle width also exceeded the general limits.

• Please refer to the attached document [PDF: 250KB] for details of the violation.

2. Efforts to date

Vehicles that violate vehicle restriction laws, especially those that violate the vehicle weight regulations, can cause serious accidents in addition to reducing speed and reducing maneuverability. In addition, the impact of one vehicle with an axle load of 20 tons on a bridge deck ^(※) is said to be equivalent to the impact of approximately 4,000 vehicles with an axle load of 10 tons, which is the general limit, passing through the bridge, and is a factor in significantly deteriorating roads.
For this reason, NEXCO EAST has organized a Vehicle Restriction Ordinance Violation Enforcement Unit to specialize in enforcement and provide guidance and enforcement against violating vehicles.
In addition to providing direct guidance at the scene of traffic enforcement, Expressway Corporation and six Expressway companies are working together to eradicate violating vehicles by issuing joint written warnings to malicious violators and inviting the person in charge of the malicious violator (company) to a Vehicle Restriction Ordinance violator training seminar for face-to-face guidance.

• The bridge deck...
  Bridge deck components that support the load of automobiles, etc.

3. Future actions

Expressway Corporation and NEXCO EAST will continue to work closely with relevant agencies to take strict administrative action against vehicles that violate the Road Act, and strive to ensure safe and smooth traffic.

• Reference materials [PDF: 214KB]