Hong Nampyo, Changwon Special City Mayor, Visits Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport... Proposes Road and Railway Issues of Changwon City

Actively Requesting Inclusion of Undergrounding the Gyeongjeon Line Section Passing Through Downtown from Changwon Station to Masan Station in National Plans

On the morning of the 29th, Hong Nampyo, Mayor of Changwon Special City in Gyeongnam, visited the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (hereinafter referred to as MOLIT) to propose policy issues of our city in line with the administrative direction of this year as the "Year of Accelerating Innovation Growth Transformation" for the next 50 years of Changwon's future.

Hong Nampyo, Changwon Special City Mayor.

On that day, Mayor Hong met with Baek Wonkuk, the 2nd Vice Minister of MOLIT, along with the Director of the Road Bureau and the Head of the Railway Construction Division, to request ▲ the revision of the Enforcement Decree of the "Road Act" for improving congested roads in special cities ▲ the undergrounding of the Gyeongjeon Line section passing through the city center (Changwon Station to Masan Station) ▲ and the inclusion of new projects in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan.

He also asked for support to enable the construction of regional transportation infrastructure corresponding to national tasks and the efficient growth strategy of national spatial development.

◆ Revision of the Enforcement Decree of the "Road Act" for Improving Congested Roads in Special Cities

The Enforcement Decree of the "Road Act" defines the scope of the "Metropolitan Area Traffic Congestion Road Improvement Project" as roads in the dong (neighborhood) areas of metropolitan cities.

Changwon City, as a metropolitan-level city, sufficiently contributes to the formation of a wide-area economic zone including national industrial complexes and the new port. However, before integration, connecting roads between Masan, Changwon, and Jinhae were eligible for national funding as local roads, but after integration, due to relative discrimination and institutional limitations, it has been excluded from national financial support.

Despite being a city that can fully serve as the center of a mega city, its development is hindered.

Mayor Hong requested the revision of the Enforcement Decree of the "Road Act" by presenting the above reasons.

◆ Undergrounding of the Gyeongjeon Line Section Passing Through the City Center (Changwon Station to Masan Station)

He proposed the undergrounding of the railway section passing through the city center between Changwon Station and Masan Station on the Gyeongjeon Line.

Recently, the "Special Act on Railway Undergrounding and Integrated Development of Railway Sites" was enacted, and MOLIT is scheduled to establish a "Comprehensive Plan for Integrated Development of Railway Undergrounding" to accelerate the railway undergrounding projects.

Therefore, he requested the inclusion of this project in the comprehensive plan to resolve residents' damages caused by the railway, such as disruption of living areas, noise, and dust.

◆ Inclusion of New Projects in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan

He also requested the inclusion of five new railway lines in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan to respond to the increase in metropolitan travel demand due to urban metropolitanization and expansion of living areas.

He emphasized the necessity of establishing a Changwon-centered tri-port (airport, port, railway) through ▲ Dongdaegu?Changwon high-speed railway ▲ Hapcheon?Masan high-speed railway for a 2-hour high-speed connection between Seoul and Changwon, and the "Changwon-type Tri-port Express Railway (CTX)" including ▲ CTX-Changwon Line ▲ CTX-Masan Line ▲ CTX-Jinhae Line.

Mayor Hong said, "I ask for the active reflection of the proposed matters so that not only the resolution of local government challenges but also the alignment of our city's administrative direction with government policies can enable balanced national development."

In response, Vice Minister Baek said, "We will thoroughly review the major issues of Changwon Special City through relevant departments and actively support them."

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