Ministry of the Interior and Safety Selects 15 Local Governments for 'Bicycle Contest Project' Support... Cheonan, Chungnam and Yeosu, Jeonnam Included

Five Bicycle City Branding Support Projects and Ten Bicycle Road Safety Improvement Projects Selected

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced on the 14th that it has selected 15 local governments for the '2021 Bicycle Contest Project' to promote bicycle use and improve bicycle road safety, investing a budget of 6.3 billion KRW.

Started in 2019, the 'Bicycle City Branding Support Project' encourages local governments' interest in developing customized bicycle policies tailored to regional characteristics and supports the promotion of bicycle use.

The five local governments selected this year are Cheonan-si in Chungnam, Yeosu-si in Jeonnam, Gurye-gun in Jeonnam, Gangjin-gun in Jeonnam, and Hadong-gun in Gyeongnam. 'Cheonan-si in Chungnam' will connect the disconnected sections of the Seonghwancheon Silver Grass Trail to create a Cheonan-style bicycle trail that harmonizes history and cultural landscapes, while 'Yeosu-si in Jeonnam' will install bicycle roads on roads connecting four surrounding islands to create the 'Yeosu Seomseomgil Storytelling Bicycle Course' for island tourism.

'Gurye-gun in Jeonnam' will introduce the Binggure Bicycle Station for bicycle travelers in the key area where the Seomjin River bicycle trail crossing course intersects, and 'Gangjin-gun in Jeonnam' will operate a Green Bicycle Travel Center linked with Gangjin Bay Ecological Park to promote bicycle tourism. 'Hadong-gun in Gyeongnam' will establish a smart bicycle green loop by introducing a system for sharing bicycles between Hadong Haeryang Village and Gwangyang Maehwa Village.

Ten local governments were also selected through a contest for the 'Bicycle Road Accident Risk Area Safety Improvement Project' to reduce accident risks on bicycle roads. The ten local governments selected for the safety improvement project are Yeonsu-gu in Incheon, Dong-gu in Gwangju, Daedeok-gu in Daejeon, Buk-gu in Ulsan, Sejong, Suwon-si in Gyeonggi, Cheongju-si in Chungbuk, Gunsan-si in Jeonbuk, Gurye-gun in Jeonnam, and Gyeongju-si in Gyeongbuk.

Through this project, efforts will be made to improve safety and expand safety facilities on bicycle roads by separating sidewalks and bicycle lanes, connecting disconnected sections, repairing uneven surfaces and damages, and reinforcing safety facilities.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety explained that private experts participated in selecting project sites, comprehensively evaluating local governments' willingness to promote the project, project appropriateness, effectiveness, and ripple effects. Selected local governments will also receive advice and support from specialized institutions such as the Korea Transport Institute during the project implementation process.

Park Seong-ho, Director of Local Autonomy and Decentralization at the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, said, "The role of bicycles, an eco-friendly means of transportation, has become more important to improve energy and transportation issues and to practice carbon neutrality," adding, "Promoting bicycle use requires the roles of both the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and local governments, so I hope this project will serve as an opportunity for local governments to actively participate."

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