Incheon Mayor Park Namchun Strongly Urges GTX-D Line Connecting Cheongna, Geomdan to Seoul

The 'Y'-shaped GTX-D line proposed by Incheon City (marked in red) and the GTX-D line connection section announced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (from Gimpo Janggi to Bucheon Sports Complex, marked with a white circle) [Provided by Incheon City]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Park Namchun, Mayor of Incheon, strongly urged the government to extend the Metropolitan Area Express Railway (GTX)-D line in a 'Y' shape connecting the two routes of Cheongna and Geomdan to Seoul.

On the morning of the 27th, Mayor Park visited the Government Complex Sejong and met with officials from central government agencies including the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, requesting that the extension of the GTX-D line to Seoul be reflected in the 4th National Railway Network Construction Plan.

On the 29th, Mayor Park plans to meet with high-ranking government officials such as Choi Kiju, Chairman of the Metropolitan Area Wide-Area Transportation Committee, Jeon Haecheol, Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and Hwang Seonggyu, 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, at the National Assembly to reiterate the request for the extension of the GTX-D line to Seoul.

According to the 4th National Railway Network Construction Plan (2021?2030) announced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 22nd, the GTX-D line will be constructed from Gimpo Janggi to Bucheon Sports Complex. This is a significant reduction compared to the routes proposed by Incheon City and Gyeonggi Province.

Incheon City requested a 110km long 'Y'-shaped route starting from Incheon International Airport and Gimpo in Gyeonggi Province, merging at Bucheon, passing through Gangnam, and extending to Hanam in Gyeonggi Province. In Incheon, the route passes through Seo-gu Cheongna, Gajeong, Jakjeon-dong, and the Geomdan and Gyeyang areas.

Gyeonggi Province has proposed the construction of a 68km long GTX-D line connecting Gimpo, passing through Gangnam, and extending to Hanam.

Residents of the western metropolitan area, including Incheon and Gimpo, are strongly opposing the announcement that the GTX-D line will not be connected to Seoul.

Incheon City also plans to request that the 2nd Airport Railroad and the extension project of Seoul Subway Line 5 to Geomdan be reflected in the 4th National Railway Network Construction Plan.

Mayor Park stated, "The significant reduction of the GTX-D, which contains the aspirations of citizens in northwestern Incheon, in the National Railway Network Construction Plan further entrenches transportation imbalance within the metropolitan area."

He added, "Until the 4th National Railway Network Plan is finalized and announced in June, I will persuade government departments and the political circles to reflect Incheon's opinions as much as possible. Since Incheon has a history of successfully attracting the GTX-B line with the citizens despite the time it took, we will also achieve the GTX-D line together with the citizens," he emphasized.

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