6 Hours 10 Minutes from Seoul to Busan at 2 PM on the First Day of Seol Holiday

Relief Peak Starting at Noon

On the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday, a surge of vehicles heading home has caused continuous congestion on major highways. However, the peak seems to be passing around noon.

According to the Korea Expressway Corporation, as of 2 p.m. on the 9th, the estimated travel times by car from Seoul Tollgate to the destinations are ▲Busan 6 hours 10 minutes ▲Ulsan 5 hours 40 minutes ▲Daegu 5 hours 10 minutes ▲Gwangju 4 hours 50 minutes ▲Gangneung 3 hours ▲Daejeon 2 hours 40 minutes.

On the 8th, one day before the Lunar New Year holiday, the full-scale homecoming battle began, causing congestion as vehicles crowded the southbound lanes toward Busan on the Seoul Gyeongbu Expressway. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

On the Gyeongbu Expressway heading toward Busan, congestion is occurring in sections such as ▲Hannam to Seocho 4 km ▲Osan to near Namsa 8 km ▲Cheonan Rest Area to Oksan 17 km ▲Near Okcheon to near Okcheon Terminal 16 km.

On the Seohaean Expressway heading toward Mokpo, traffic is backed up in areas including ▲West Seoul Tollgate to near Sunsan Tunnel 4 km ▲Seopyeongtaek Junction to Seohae Bridge 12 km ▲Near Haemi to Hongseong 10 km ▲Daecheon Rest Area to near Daecheon 6 km ▲Near Dongseocheon Junction to near Dong Gunsan 22 km ▲Near Seogimje to near Buan 11 km.

On the Jungbu Expressway heading toward Namyi, vehicles are moving slowly in sections such as ▲East Seoul Tollgate to near Sangok Junction 3 km ▲Hobeop Junction to near Namyicheon IC 8 km. On the Yeongdong Line heading toward Gangneung, congestion is reported in ▲Dundae Junction to near Banwol Tunnel 2 km ▲Gunja Junction to Wolgot Junction 2 km.

The expected nationwide traffic volume for the day is about 5.19 million vehicles. Approximately 490,000 vehicles are expected to move from the metropolitan area to local regions, and about 370,000 vehicles from local regions to the metropolitan area. Road congestion in the homebound direction is expected to peak between 11 a.m. and noon and ease around 8 to 9 p.m. In the return direction, congestion is expected to start between 9 and 10 a.m., peak between noon and 1 p.m., and clear around 6 to 7 p.m.

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