Opening of 6 National Roads Including Cheongsong and Namyangju by Year-End

National Route 31 Cheongsong Bypass Road (Provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] By the end of the year, six national highway sections totaling 25.6 km in Gyeongbuk Cheongsong-gun, Gyeonggi Namyangju-si, and other areas will be opened sequentially.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 22nd that six national highways, where habitual congestion and dangerous sections have been improved, will be opened sequentially by the end of the year. The total length is 25.6 km, with a total project cost of 414.6 billion KRW. Through this, the trunk function of the national highways will be further strengthened, allowing road users and local residents to use the roads safely and conveniently.

The first to open among the six is the National Route 31 Cheongsong Bypass Road. It is scheduled to open at 3 p.m. on the 24th, bypassing the residential area of Cheongsong-gun, Gyeongbuk, connecting Cheongun-ri to Geumgok-ri in Cheongsong-eup. It is a newly constructed 2-lane 4.4 km section with a total project cost of 48.6 billion KRW, and construction took about six years.

Through this, travel time was reduced by more than 2 minutes (from 7 minutes to 5 minutes), and travel distance was shortened by 0.8 km (from 5.2 km to 4.4 km). It is expected to improve road use convenience for local residents and help revitalize regional tourism such as Juwangsan by linking with the nearby Sangju-Yeongdeok Expressway.

At 5 p.m. on the 29th, the National Route 14 section from Tongyeong Gwangdo to Goseong will open. As part of the 4-lane national highway improvement project, the 7.2 km section from Nosong-ri, Tongyeong-si, Gyeongnam to Jukgye-ri, Goseong-gun was improved. A total project cost of 49.9 billion KRW was invested, and construction took about six years.

This road had an average of 12.6 traffic accidents per km, which is 2.4 times higher than the national road average of 5.3 accidents per km. To address this, the project improved 7.2 km of the 15.5 km 4-lane section from Nosong-ri, Tongyeong-si to Jukgye-ri, Goseong-gun. It is expected to reduce traffic accidents and congestion, thereby contributing to improving the living and residential conditions of local residents.

Next, at 5 p.m. on the 30th, the National Route 21 section from Sunchang Donggye to Jeokseong will open. This project improved the alignment of the existing road, which had severe curves and narrow widths, and expanded the road width, upgrading a 3.7 km section connecting Gumi-ri to Gwanjeon-ri in Donggye-myeon, Sunchang-gun, Jeonbuk. The total project cost was 21.6 billion KRW, and construction took four years.

This road opening is expected to secure safety for road users and significantly reduce the risk of traffic accidents for local residents. Additionally, it is expected to contribute to balanced regional development by improving accessibility between Sunchang-gun and Namwon-si.

National Road No. 47 Namyangju Jinjeop~Naechon Section (Provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)

On the last day of this year, the 31st, three national highway sections will open simultaneously at 4 p.m.: ▲ National Route 47 Namyangju Jinjeop to Naechon (5.3 km), ▲ National Route 40 Hongseong Seobunamdang Bypass Road (2.33 km), and ▲ National Route 40 Boryeong Jupo to Ocheon (4.03 km).

The Namyangju Jinjeop to Naechon section follows the earlier opening on the 7th of the 5 km section from Janghyeon-ri to Pallya-ri in Jinjeop-eup, Namyangju-si, Gyeonggi, and now opens the 4.0 km section from Pallya-ri, Jinjeop-eup, Namyangju-si to the terminus in Naechon-myeon, Pocheon-si, making a total length of 9.24 km fully opened this time. A total project cost of 255.1 billion KRW was invested, and construction took about eight years.

This project expanded the habitually congested National Route 47 from 4 lanes to 6 lanes, reducing travel time across the entire section by more than 7 minutes (from 15 minutes to 8 minutes). It is expected to improve transportation convenience and safety for residents in northern Gyeonggi, as well as contribute to regional economic revitalization by reducing logistics costs.

National Route 40 Hongseong Seobunamdang Bypass Road (Provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)

The National Route 40 Hongseong Seobunamdang Bypass Road is a road bypassing the urban residential area of Namdang-ri, Seobu-myeon, Hongseong-gun, Chungnam. It is a newly constructed 2-lane 2.3 km section from Namdang-ri to Sin-ri. A total project cost of 25.8 billion KRW was invested, and construction took about five years. The newly opened road is expected to reduce traffic congestion and accident risks caused by the existing road passing through the urban area, thereby improving the living and residential conditions of local residents.

The same National Route 40 Boryeong Jupo to Ocheon section will also open together. This project improved the alignment of the existing road, which had severe curves and narrow widths, and expanded the road width, upgrading a 2-lane 4.0 km road connecting Boryeong-ri, Jupo-myeon, Boryeong-si to Soseong-ri, Ocheon-myeon, Chungnam. A total project cost of 13.6 billion KRW was invested, and construction took about five years. It is expected to enhance road user safety and contribute to the revitalization of tourism in the Boryeong area.

Juhyeon-jong, Director of the Road Bureau at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "The roads opening this time are expected to greatly help improve the living conditions of local residents and revitalize the regional economy," adding, "We will continue to strengthen road networks connecting regions, focus investments on resolving habitual congestion in urban areas and improving dangerous roads in underdeveloped areas, and do our best to promote urgent and convenient road projects from the demand side perspective."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.