Snow removal has been progressing on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, the mountain pass that winds its way in the Northern Japan Alps spread out between Toyama and Nagano prefectures and is popular for its towering walls of snow.
The emerging ribbon of road, which will reopen to traffic in the spring, could be clearly seen on Thursday amid the white snow of the mountain.
The plowing is being done on a 23-kilometer section of a toll road linking the Toyama Prefecture areas of Bijodaira and Murodo, which have a difference in elevation of 1,473 meters. Although this winter was abnormally warm, the 6.9 meters of snow that accumulated in the Murodo area as of Monday was an increase compared to last year, according to Tateyama Kurobe Kanko Co., which operates a bus service along the route.
Even the "Snow Wall," which towers over the road on both sides, are expected to surpass last year's height of 16 meters.
The road is scheduled to be completely opened on April 15, with events allowing visitors to walk in the snow corridor planned from that day through June 22.
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