Yoon: "30-Minute Commute Era... Full-Scale GTX Era to Begin This Year" (Comprehensive)

6th People's Livelihood Forum Opening Remarks
Yoon "Quality of Commute is Quality of Life"
Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam, TK, Gwangju-Jeonnam, Daejeon-Sejong-Chungcheong
Solving Commute Issues with xTX Construction
Rapid Promotion of Underground Railroads and Highways

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Yoon Suk-yeol announced on the 25th that through the smooth advancement of the Metropolitan Area Express Railway (GTX) project, "we will open the full-scale GTX era starting this year." The plan aims to solve the commuting traffic congestion in the metropolitan area and the lack of transportation infrastructure in local regions, targeting a "30-minute commute era." First, the GTX-A, B, and C lines will be expanded, and new D, E, and F lines will be established. Additionally, major highways and railways in the metropolitan area will be rapidly moved underground, and the construction of metropolitan express railways in regional large cities will be promoted to address transportation disparities.

In his opening remarks at the 6th "Public Discussion on Livelihoods" held under the theme "30-minute Commute Era, Resolving Transportation Disparities" at the Uijeongbu City Hall auditorium in Gyeonggi Province on the morning of the same day, President Yoon said, "If transportation is properly established, people can sleep more, spend time on self-development, or most importantly, spend more time with their families." President Yoon, who had missed the livelihood discussion on the 22nd, resumed his livelihood activities after resolving conflicts between the ruling party and the government.

On this day, President Yoon stated, "We will expand the GTX-A, B, and C lines and establish D, E, and F lines." He expressed empathy by saying, "Transportation is as important as housing in life, and housing and transportation are almost inseparable. Due to misguided real estate regulation policies, housing prices have risen too much, and urban housing supply has been virtually blocked, forcing many to move to the outskirts of cities without proper transportation infrastructure, causing great hardship." He reaffirmed his presidential campaign pledge for a "30-minute commute era."

According to the government, the average commuting time in major metropolitan areas nationwide is about two hours, and based on 20 working days per month, people spend 40 hours monthly on the road. President Yoon emphasized, "When I took the Gimpo Gold Line during the presidential election, it was truly suffocating. That’s why I promised a 30-minute commute era during the election. The quality of commuting is directly linked to the quality of our lives."

GTX-C Passing Through Uijeongbu to Open by 2028

He also introduced specific schedules for the opening of GTX lines. President Yoon emphasized, "The GTX-C line passing through Uijeongbu will hold a groundbreaking ceremony today and open by 2028." He added, "The fastest progressing A line will open the Suseo-Dongtan section in March. The Paju-Seoul Station section will also open by the end of the year. The B line, connecting Incheon to Namyangju, will begin construction in March and open by 2030." Furthermore, he mentioned, "Extensions of the ABC lines will also be swiftly pursued. The A line will extend to Pyeongtaek, the B line to Chuncheon, and the C line will extend north to Dongducheon and south to Cheonan-Asan."

Regarding the GTX-A, B, and C construction plans, he said, "Since local governments will bear the costs for the extensions of the A and C lines, design work will begin early next year without a preliminary feasibility study (PFS), and for the B line, we will proceed with the PFS in consultation with local governments."

He also explained the blueprint for establishing the D, E, and F lines. President Yoon said, "The D line will connect Incheon and Gimpo through Gangnam to Namyangju and Wonju in a Y shape; the E line will be constructed from Incheon through northern Seoul to Guri and Namyangju; and the F line will be a metropolitan circular line. The three lines D, E, and F will be incorporated first into the national railway network plan and promoted simultaneously. We will also accept private proposals and pursue private investment projects quickly in parallel."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Yoon emphasized the significant economic effects of completing the GTX on the metropolitan area, Chungcheong, and Gangwon regions. He explained, "With the expansion of living zones through GTX, a single super-connected economic metropolitan living zone will be formed from the metropolitan area to Chungcheong and Gangwon. This will not only improve commuting convenience but also create new investments and jobs." The plan also aims to stabilize the market by revitalizing domestic demand and supplying new housing sites near stations. According to quantitative analysis by the Korea Transport Institute, the direct employment effect of GTX is 500,000 people, and the direct production inducement effect is 75 trillion won.

11 Trillion Won Concentrated Investment in Metropolitan Area Transportation Improvement Measures

Additionally, he explained plans to concentrate 11 trillion won in transportation improvement measures across the four major sectors of the metropolitan area?east, west, south, and north?and to swiftly mediate conflicts among local governments and institutions to thoroughly resolve transportation issues in new towns. President Yoon said, "We will significantly shorten the construction period for transportation networks in newly developed new towns. Compared to existing new towns, road construction periods will be shortened by two years, and although railway construction takes a long time, we will reduce the railway network construction period from five and a half to eight years."

Since commuting problems are experienced not only in Seoul and the metropolitan area but also in major cities nationwide, the plan is to build metropolitan express railways with a maximum speed of 180 km/h in regional sectors such as Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam (Boo-Ul-Gyeong), Daegu-Gyeongbuk (TK), Daejeon-Sejong-Chungcheong, and Gwangju-Jeonnam. President Yoon said, "We will start within this year with the Daejeon-Sejong-Cheongju CTX, which has been converted to a private investment project, and will prepare promotion plans for other lines in consultation with local governments. Through this, regional metropolitan areas will also develop into mega-cities where 30-minute commuting is possible."

He added, "We will also install dedicated bus lanes on main roads, significantly introduce double-decker electric buses, and pursue the undergrounding of major metropolitan highways such as the metropolitan circular, Gyeongbu, and Gyeongin highways in the short term during my term, and will begin establishing a comprehensive plan for railway undergrounding."

In his closing remarks, President Yoon said, "The most important thing is money. This special law allows projects to be promoted through private investment and enables the proper distribution of profits generated. I am confident that it will induce substantial private investment and be promoted with a sense of speed, and the government will play a central role here."

He urged public officials, "Transportation policy should not rely solely on indicators or report figures. The pain and inconvenience of citizens who have to line up long at metropolitan bus stops in this cold weather and struggle to breathe in crowded subways cannot be quantified by any statistics, and a government for the people must resolve this swiftly."

Attending the discussion were Chief of Staff Lee Gwan-seop, Policy Chief Seong Tae-yoon, Senior Secretary for Economic Affairs Park Chun-seop, Senior Secretary for Civil Society Hwang Sang-mu, and other presidential office aides, as well as Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Park Sang-woo and Lee Han-jun of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH).

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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