Mokpo City Old Downtown's Transformation into a 'City Without Utility Poles'

Goal to Complete 2.2km in 4 Sections Within This Year

Mokpo City's original downtown area, which has achieved a cleaner urban landscape through the underground utility project. Photo by Mokpo City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Jeong Seunghyun] Mokpo City, Jeonnam, announced on the 23rd that it is smoothly progressing with the undergrounding project for electricity and telecommunications in the old downtown area.

To improve the landscape of the old downtown, the city started the undergrounding project in March, sharing the project cost (7 billion KRW) equally with Korea Electric Power Corporation and telecommunications companies.

The project section covers four segments, totaling 2.2 km, centered on the bustling street running through Manho-dong and Yudal-dong in the old downtown, with completion targeted within this year.

The Manho-dong and Yudal-dong areas are regions scattered with modern historical and cultural assets, where overhead utility poles and telecommunication poles are tangled like a spider web, not only damaging the cityscape but also posing safety risks during severe weather, causing ongoing inconvenience.

Currently, the undergrounding project is about 70% complete in the main construction phase of laying main conduits around the Modern History Hall 2, Gyeongdong Cathedral, and the 1897 Gaehang Cultural Street (Beonhwal-ro). Once the main conduit laying is finished, vehicle traffic restrictions will be lifted, significantly reducing residents' inconvenience.

From August to October, the main cable installation and branch connection work linking to households will proceed. Around November to December, existing overhead wires and utility poles for electricity and telecommunications will be removed, making the landscape improvement effects visible by the end of the year.

The city plans to pave the entire undergrounding section, which currently has temporary pavement, early next year. It will also complete pedestrian environment improvement projects and the 1897 Gaehang Cultural Street streetscape project linked to the undergrounding work, preparing fully to welcome spring tourists.

A city official stated, “We expect the undergrounding project to greatly contribute to improving the old downtown landscape, providing satisfaction to both residents and tourists,” and added, “We ask for residents' broad understanding and cooperation regarding inconveniences caused during construction. We will carry out the work safely and efficiently to achieve maximum effect with minimal inconvenience.”

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