Since in modern times after the Meiji Restoration, the custom of the pilgrimage to Kumano became obsolete, Kohechi was no longer used as a pilgrimage route, however it continued to be used as a community road for trade and transportation of goods by local residents until the early Showa era.
明治維新以降の近代に入ってからは熊野詣の風習も殆どなくなってしまったため、参詣道としての利用はほとんど絶えたものの、周囲の住人が交易・物資移送を行う生活道路として昭和初期までは使用されつづけた。