National Route 44 (国道44号, Kokudō yonjūyon-gō) is the easternmost of the
national highways of
Japan. It connects the cities of
Kushiro and
Nemuro in eastern part of the island and
prefecture of
Hokkaido in northern Japan.
Route 44 was originally designated on 18 May 1953 as National Route 242, and this was redesignated as Route 44 when the route was promoted to a Class 1 highway.
Overlapping sections
From the origin to Kitaodori 5-chome intersection, Kushiro City:
Route 38
From the origin to Kiba 3-chome intersection, Kushiro City:
Route 391
From the origin to Beppo intersection, Kushiro Town:
Route 272
History
18 May 1953 - Second Class National Highway 242 (from
Kushiro to
Nemuro)
1 April 1963 - First Class National Highway 44 (from
Kushiro to
Nemuro)
1 April 1965 - General National Highway 44 (from
Kushiro to
Nemuro)
^"一般国道の路線別、都道府県別道路現況" [Road statistics by General National Highway route and prefecture] (PDF) (in Japanese). Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Retrieved 19 February 2020.