"Government Must Make a Grand Decision to Reflect the 4th National Railroad Network Construction Plan"

Joint Proposal Announcement by Chairpersons of 6 City and Provincial Councils in Yeonghonam

The chairpersons of the Gwangju, Jeonnam, Jeonbuk, Daegu, Gyeongnam, and Gyeongbuk Provincial Councils are taking a commemorative photo on the 3rd at the Gwangju Metropolitan Council before announcing a joint petition urging the inclusion in the 4th National Railroad Network Construction Plan.

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] “We urge the government to make a magnanimous decision to include the ‘Dongseo Integration Cooperation Railway Project,’ the Dalbit Inland Railway project that can achieve national integration and balanced regional development, in the 4th National Railway Network Construction Plan.”

The chairpersons of the Gwangju, Jeonnam, Jeonbuk, Daegu, Gyeongnam, and Gyeongbuk provincial councils called for its inclusion in the 4th National Railway Network Construction Plan at a press conference held at the Gwangju Metropolitan Council on the 3rd.

Through a joint proposal from the six city and provincial councils of Yeongnam and Honam, they emphasized, “The Dalbit Inland Railway connecting Gwangju and Daegu within ‘one hour’ is the first step to resolving political conflicts and confrontations between Yeongnam and Honam, achieving East-West harmony, and is an essential project that lays the foundation for true national integration and balanced regional development.”

Earlier, the government did not include the Gwangju-Daegu Dalbit Inland Railway in the draft of the 4th National Railway Network Construction Plan announced on the 22nd of last month.

They argued, “Currently, Korea’s railways are mainly built along the north-south axis connecting the metropolitan area and local regions, so building an east-west axis railway is urgently needed for national balanced development. However, excluding it on the grounds of low economic feasibility is absolutely unacceptable.”

They continued, “The Dalbit Inland Railway crossing east-west between Gwangju and Daegu will break away from the metropolitan-centered economic growth policy, promote balanced regional development, and become a new growth engine for the underdeveloped southern economic zone.”

They also stated, “The Dalbit Inland Railway should not be judged solely on economic logic,” adding, “When the Gyeongbu Expressway, Honam High-Speed Railway, and Incheon International Airport were constructed, there were many concerns about economic feasibility, but now they play a pivotal role in the nation to the extent that their supply capacity is insufficient.”

The chairpersons of the six city and provincial councils of Yeongnam and Honam said, “If the Dalbit Inland Railway is constructed, it will be linked with the existing railway network currently in operation, establishing a nationwide circular railway network, and will promote economic and cultural communication and harmony through active human and material exchanges centered on Yeongnam and Honam.”

They added, “There is no longer any justification or time to delay the inclusion of the Dalbit Railway project in the national railway plan,” and said, “Please now fulfill the earnest wishes of the citizens of Yeongnam and Honam, who have suffered as the national railway plan has been repeatedly canceled.”

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