"Toll Fees to Increase... Changwon Pallyong Tunnel and Jigae-Namsan Private Road to Raise Rates from July 1"

Despite Rising Prices, Toll Freeze Leads to Accumulated Financial Burden for Changwon City, Making Increase Unavoidable

Changwon Special City in Gyeongnam Province will increase the toll fees for the Pallyong Tunnel and the privately funded Jigae-Namsan Road by 100 to 300 KRW depending on vehicle type, starting from 00:00 on July 1.

Changwon Special City Hall.

According to the implementation agreement, the toll fees for these two privately funded roads are determined every year based on the change in the previous year’s Consumer Price Index as of April 1. The decision is made through consultations between the project operators, Pallyong Tunnel Co., Ltd. and Jigae-Namsan Urban Expressway Co., Ltd., and the competent authority, Changwon Special City.

Accordingly, from July 1, the toll for Pallyong Tunnel will be increased by 100 KRW for small and medium vehicles, making it 1,000 KRW for small vehicles and 1,500 KRW for medium vehicles. The toll for large vehicles will be increased by 300 KRW to 2,100 KRW. For the Jigae-Namsan Road, the toll for small and medium vehicles will be increased by 200 KRW each, making it 1,300 KRW for small vehicles and 1,900 KRW for medium vehicles. The toll for large vehicles will be increased by 300 KRW to 2,500 KRW.

This is the first toll increase since the initial tolls were set for the two privately funded roads.

When the Jigae-Namsan Road first opened in 2021, the toll for small vehicles was set at 1,100 KRW, reduced from the original 1,500 KRW through 200 KRW in shared profits from refinancing, and 100 KRW each from an extension of the operation period and city financial support, in an effort to reduce citizens’ economic burden.

Although the agreement stipulates that tolls should be increased from April 1, the city decided to freeze the tolls until the first half of the year in line with the government’s price stabilization policy, and to implement the increase from July 1, the second half of the year. Since the adjustment date was delayed from April 1 to July 1, the city will cover the resulting revenue loss with its own budget.

The city also considered that if the toll freeze continued, it would have to cover the entire revenue loss of the project operators with city funds as per the agreement, that the burden on road users would be unfairly shifted to all citizens, and that a large one-time increase reflecting cumulative inflation in the future would place a greater burden on road users. Taking all these factors into account, the city inevitably decided to increase the tolls starting in the second half of the year.

The increased tolls will apply to vehicles entering the toll booths from July 1 onward.

To minimize confusion among road users before the toll adjustment, the city plans to announce the toll increase in advance through road electronic signboards within the privately funded road sections, as well as via its website and social media channels.

Je Jongnam, Director of the Transportation and Construction Bureau, said, "We ask for the understanding of road users regarding this unavoidable toll increase. We will do our best to create a safer and more pleasant road environment to improve the convenience of road use."

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