これまでわたしは九州には7-8回は来ている。
　それは福岡市を起点として飛行機利用で来ているケースばかり。本州との自動車利用での地理的接続ポイント・北九州市には今回はじめて訪れたに近い。いまから20年近く前、息子が小学生当時福岡からクルマで「関門海峡」をピンポイントで訪れた程度。
　今回は九州北部の宗像に連泊し、ブログに書いた通り一昨日本州地区・広島県地方への弾丸往復。そして昨日は北九州市小倉北区「松本清張記念館」「小倉城」などを参観に訪れ、本格的に都市高速である「北九州高速道路」を利用した次第。
　・・・いや、参った（泣）。
　「北九州都市高速は、右左折合流の連続や複雑なジャンクションなど構造が入り組んでおり、初見では非常に迷いやすい道路」というAI回答だが、今回、丸２日いじめられ悩まされてしまった。いち旅人として困難にさらされた。
　カーナビの案内に従って「なにも考えないで」広域移動をするのがわたしの普通の旅行ライフスタイル。首都高速なども分かりにくいけれど、頻繁に利用することから経験知が加わって慣れて使えている。そういう交通常識でなにも考えずに利用したが、１日目は異様な大渋滞にいじめられ、２日目は高速料金の２度取られを経験した。
　渋滞の方は広島県からの弾丸往復でちょうど通勤の帰宅時間に重なってしまったので、まぁやむを得ないなぁと思っていましたが、その複雑な道案内ぶりに閉口させられていた。内心では本州方面から宗像に行くのに、なぜカーナビが「九州自動車道」をまっすぐ行かせてくれないのか、不思議とは感じていた。確かに数kmは距離短縮にはなるそうだが。
　昨日は宗像から小倉北区の「松本清張記念館」に向かったが、複雑きわまりない道案内の末、最後の案内箇所でそれも曲がって直後に、高速道入口と一般道の２つの「左折」分枝箇所に遭遇してしまった。
　「え、これはどっち？」という咄嗟の判断を迫られた。ほんの２−３ｍの違いでこれは土地に慣れたドライバーでなければ判断は絶対できない。そもそもそれまでもこういう判断の連続なのだ。疲労感MAXでの「咄嗟の判断強要」。
　すぐに後続者があったことでやむなく高速入口方向に向かわざるを得なかった。１km程度移動のために大回りさせられ、なお再度高速料金520円を追加徴収された。・・・
　目的地前あと２−３km地点での無念の高速再入場。・・・怒り爆発！
　なんでこんなに複雑怪奇に作るんだよ！であります。
　全国を走り回る人間にこんな難解さは到底容認できない。広々北海道人には想像超え。
　松本清張はこの地で産まれ「日本の黒い闇」で知られた作家だけれど、だからなのか？という八つ当たりにまで至ってしまった。・・・なんもさ、道産子の意地を見せるぜ！

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English version⬇

[The “Kitakyushu Expressway” that tormented me for two whole days (sob)]
Right after a left turn, it forces you to make a split-second decision at a fork in the road. It’s impossible for a traveler. I had no choice but to pay the toll twice. Is the complex situation of a merged city being reflected in the urban expressway? …

　I’ve been to Kyushu seven or eight times so far.
However, every single one of those trips started in Fukuoka City and involved flying. This is practically my first visit to Kitakyushu, the key land bridge connecting Kyushu and Honshu. The only time I’d been here before was nearly 20 years ago, when my son was in elementary school and we drove from Fukuoka specifically to see the Kanmon Strait.
　This time, I stayed for several nights in Munakata in northern Kyushu and, as I wrote in my blog, made a whirlwind round trip to the Honshu region—specifically Hiroshima Prefecture—the day before yesterday. Then yesterday, I visited the “Seicho Matsumoto Memorial Museum” and “Kokura Castle” in Kokurakita Ward, Kitakyushu City, and actually used the “Kitakyushu Expressway,” a full-fledged urban highway.
…Man, that was rough (sob).
　The AI response stated, “The Kitakyushu Urban Expressway has a complex structure with a continuous series of right and left turns and merges, as well as intricate interchanges, making it very easy to get lost on a first visit,” but this time, I was tormented and frustrated for a full two days. As a traveler, I was truly put to the test.
　My usual travel style is to follow the car navigation system’s directions and travel long distances “without thinking.” The Metropolitan Expressway is also confusing, but since I use it frequently, I’ve gained experience and gotten used to it. I used the expressway without a second thought, relying on that common sense of traffic, but on the first day I was tormented by an unusually massive traffic jam, and on the second day I was charged the toll twice.
　As for the traffic jam, since my round-trip from Hiroshima coincided with the evening rush hour, I figured it was unavoidable, but I was thoroughly exasperated by the complicated route guidance. Deep down, I found it strange that the car navigation system wouldn’t let me take the “Kyushu Expressway” straight to Munakata from the Honshu side. I suppose it does shorten the distance by a few kilometers, though.
　Yesterday, I headed from Munakata to the “Seicho Matsumoto Memorial Museum” in Kokura Kita Ward, but after an extremely convoluted series of directions, right after turning at the final turn, I encountered a fork in the road with two “left turn” options: one leading to the highway entrance and the other to the regular road.
I was forced to make an instant decision: “Wait, which way is it?” With a difference of just two or three meters, this is something only a driver familiar with the area could possibly decide. To begin with, the entire journey had been a series of these kinds of decisions. Being forced to make split-second decisions while exhausted to the max.
Since there was a car right behind me, I had no choice but to head toward the highway entrance. I was forced to take a huge detour just to travel about 1 km, and on top of that, I was charged an additional 520 yen in tolls. …
A frustrating re-entry onto the highway just 2–3 km from my destination. … My anger exploded!
　Why on earth do they have to make it this complicated and bizarre?!
　For someone who drives all over the country, this level of confusion is simply unacceptable. It’s beyond the imagination of us spacious-minded Hokkaido locals.
　Seicho Matsumoto was born here and is known as the author of “The Dark Side of Japan”—could that be why? I even ended up taking it out on him in a fit of frustration. …Well, I’ll show you the pride of a Hokkaido native!

● Announcement
My book, *Writers and Living Spaces*, has been published as an e-book by Gentosha.
Available on Amazon.

Posted on 5月 24th, 2026 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 未分類