Hapcheon-gun Faces Controversy Over Southern Inland Railway KTX Station Location... Haeinsa & Gaya, Yaro-myeon 'Oppose'

Ministry of Land Proposes Two Plans for Seosan-ri, Hapcheon-eup and Imbuk-ri, Yulgok-myeon
Gaya and Yaro-myeon Say "Tourism Demand Increases Only Near Haeinsa Temple"

The Southern Inland Railroad Haeinsa Station Attraction Committee is holding a head-shaving ceremony in protest against the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's plan to include Hapcheon Station (Photo by Hapcheon-gun).

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Residents of Haeinsa Temple in Hapcheon and nearby areas are protesting against the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport by demanding a reopening of the public hearing regarding the location of the Nambu Inland Railway KTX station and holding head-shaving ceremonies.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport held resident briefings over two days, May 5-6, in Geoje, Tongyeong, Goseong, Sancheong, and Hapcheon?areas through which the railway line will pass?regarding the draft Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment for the Nambu Inland Railway.

About 90 people, including Bae Mong-hee, Chairman of Hapcheon County Council, Kim Yoon-chul, a provincial assembly member, residents, and Ministry officials, attended the briefing held at the Hapcheon County Comprehensive Social Welfare Center.

Earlier, on April 28, the Ministry posted two proposed station locations on its website: Seosan-ri in Hapcheon-eup (Option 1) and Imbuk-ri in Yulgok-myeon (Option 2). Option 1 aims to minimize environmental damage, while Option 2 considers route straightening.

In response, Haeinsa Temple and residents of the Gaya and Yaro areas opposed the proposals, arguing that the site selection was flawed due to the project proceeding without a preliminary feasibility study.

Haeinsa Temple introduced a site selection research report for the Nambu Inland High-Speed Railway line commissioned by the temple, stating, "Although the Hapcheon station near Haeinsa may reduce visitors to Hapcheon-eup somewhat, the increase in tourism demand near Haeinsa is expected to outweigh the decrease, resulting in a net increase in users."

Kim Tae-gu, co-chairman of the Haeinsa Station Attraction Committee, emphasized, "For demand creation and balanced regional development, the Haeinsa station should be located near Yaro-myeon, close to the Haeinsa Interchange, within 10 to 30 minutes of transportation accessibility to areas such as Geochang, Goryeong, Seongju, and Daegu, following the old 88-gok speed."

The Haeinsa Station Promotion Committee held a head-shaving ceremony in protest before the resident briefing, objecting to the exclusion of Haeinsa station from the Ministry’s draft Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to complete the feasibility study and basic planning service around May after collecting residents’ opinions through this briefing and related procedures, and then decide on the railway line and station location.

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