Incheon Police Agency Opposes Construction of 42-Story Building in Front of Headquarters... "Concerns Over Traffic Congestion and Aviation Safety"

Incheon Police Agency building exterior
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] The Incheon Police Agency has expressed opposition to the construction project of a 42-story residential-commercial complex building being promoted in front of its headquarters, citing concerns over traffic congestion, aviation safety, and facility security.

On the 27th, the Incheon Police Agency released a press statement expressing concerns that "(if the new building is constructed) it will cause severe traffic congestion, seriously hindering emergency response and significantly increasing citizens' complaints about traffic inconvenience."

Based on data provided by the project developer, the Korea Road Traffic Authority conducted three rounds of traffic impact analyses around the project site and found that traffic congestion would worsen far more than the developer's predictions.

At the Munyehoegwan Intersection, where Yesullo and Inju-daero cross, the developer predicted that the average control delay during weekday evening hours (6 PM to 7 PM) would increase from 38.4 seconds before the project to 53.5 seconds after. However, according to the Korea Road Traffic Authority's analysis, it would increase to 140.4 seconds.

This means that the time for one vehicle to pass through the Munyehoegwan Intersection would increase about fourfold, from 38.4 seconds to 140.4 seconds.

Furthermore, according to the 'Level of Service' scale, which classifies traffic congestion into eight levels (A to FFF), the Munyehoegwan Intersection corresponds to level F, indicating severe delays that drivers find difficult to tolerate.

The Incheon Police Agency stated, "The roads around the project site already experience heavy congestion during weekday rush hours, and the measures proposed by the developer cannot prevent worsening traffic congestion," adding, "This will result in longer response times for emergency vehicles and increased traffic inconvenience complaints from citizens."

They also emphasized the need for altitude restrictions to ensure the safe takeoff and landing of police helicopters.

The Incheon Police Agency said, "We operate helicopters for emergency situations and have a helipad on the rooftop of the headquarters," adding, "According to Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport standards, no building taller than 72.75 meters should be within a 200-meter radius of the headquarters, but the new building height reaches 135 meters."

Additionally, they expressed concerns that "if a high-rise building is located within less than 50 meters, it would be possible to observe inside the headquarters using filming equipment," warning that "this could lead to leaks of headquarters facilities, unexposed police vehicle numbers, and identities of persons involved in cases."

An official from the Incheon Police Agency stated, "As an institution responsible for public safety, the police must always prepare for the worst-case scenarios. Even if there are no issues under normal circumstances, any problems during emergencies must be taken into account," adding, "Especially since delays in emergency response directly affect citizen safety, it is difficult to readily accept the project based solely on financial benefits or general statistics."

The construction project opposed by the Incheon Police Agency is being promoted on the site of the former Lotte Department Store Incheon branch at 1455 Guwol-dong, Namdong-gu, located across the road in front of the headquarters.

The private developer who acquired the Lotte Department Store Incheon building plans to demolish the existing structure and build a 42-story (135 meters) residential-commercial complex on the site.

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