Gangbuk-gu Citizens' Wish for 'Shin Gangbuk Line Attraction' Delivered to Seoul City

District Mayor Lee Soon-hee Meets Seoul Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs Kang Cheol-won on the 23rd to Explain the Necessity of Attracting the New Gangbuk Line

218,922 Seoul Citizens' Signatures Delivered to Support the Attraction of the New Gangbuk Line

District Mayor Lee Soon-hee: “The New Gangbuk Line is Absolutely Necessary for Balanced Development between Gangnam and Gangbuk”

Gangbuk-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Lee Soon-hee) announced that on the 23rd, Mayor Lee met with Kang Cheol-won, Seoul Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs, to actively explain the necessity of attracting the ‘New Gangbuk Line’ and delivered signatures representing the wishes of 218,922 Seoul citizens who support this cause.

The ‘New Gangbuk Line’ is a northeastern Seoul urban railway connecting Ui-dong 4.19 Democratic Cemetery Station in Gangbuk-gu, passing Wolgye 2 Bridge, and extending to Sangbong Station. It is one of the key campaign promises of Lee Soon-hee, the 8th-term Gangbuk District Mayor. The line passes through six autonomous districts?Gangbuk, Nowon, Dobong, Dongdaemun, Seongbuk, and Jungnang?and intersects with six subway lines: Lines 1, 4, 6, and 7, the Ui-Sinseol Line, and the Dongbuk Line scheduled to open in 2026.

Attracting the New Gangbuk Line to the northeastern region, which has long been a development-deprived area, is expected not only to improve transportation conditions but also to revitalize the local economy, thereby significantly contributing to reducing the regional gap between Gangnam and Gangbuk, according to Mayor Lee’s vision.

To this end, the district prepared a basic plan for promoting the attraction of the New Gangbuk Line in July last year and has been conducting a preliminary feasibility study on the urban railway since December.

Additionally, in May of this year, promotional videos were produced to raise awareness of the necessity of attracting the New Gangbuk Line among citizens of Gangbuk-gu and neighboring districts.

Since November last year, the district has enforced the ‘Ordinance on the Attraction and Support of the New Gangbuk Line,’ establishing a legal basis for support projects and committee operations. In May this year, the ‘New Gangbuk Line Attraction Promotion Committee,’ composed of civilian representatives, was formed to establish a public-private cooperation system.

Utilizing this framework, the district, along with local organizations, the promotion committee, and district officials, launched a signature campaign in May. Within just three months, they gathered the support of 218,922 Seoul citizens. A district official stated that this clearly demonstrates the high expectations of northeastern area residents for the New Gangbuk Line.

When delivering the signatures of over 210,000 Seoul citizens to the Seoul Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs, District Mayor Lee Soon-hee conveyed the challenging conditions by saying, “While Seoul has grown into an international metropolis, the northeastern region has been a development-deprived area. Among these, Gangbuk-gu is the only district without a subway transfer station.”

She further explained the necessity of attracting the New Gangbuk Line and the economic and social effects such as balanced development between Gangnam and Gangbuk, stating, “The northeastern area urgently needs transportation infrastructure to become a self-sufficient city and achieve economic development. With the easing of height restrictions, Moa Town 1, and redevelopment plans across six northeastern districts, this area has high development potential.”

Seoul Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs Kang Cheol-won responded, “We have received the valuable opinions of citizens and will review them thoroughly.”

The district plans to complete the preliminary feasibility study by December this year and submit it to Seoul City to include the New Gangbuk Line in the ‘2nd Urban Railway Network Construction Modification Plan’ that Seoul City will promote by the end of next year.

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