The Busiest Road in Korea: Nooji–Seoun Section of Metropolitan Area First Ring Expressway Tops List, Hanam–Toegyewon Drops to Second

The section between Nooji and Seoun Junction on the Metropolitan Area First Ring Expressway recorded the highest daily traffic volume of any road in the country last year, with 224,238 vehicles per day. Previously, the Hanam–Toegyewon section, which topped the list for traffic volume in 2024, dropped to second place with 223,286 vehicles per day.

According to the results of the 2025 road traffic volume survey released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on May 8, the third busiest section was the Singal–Pangyo stretch of the Gyeongbu Expressway, with 221,417 vehicles per day. The Pangyo–Hanam section of the Metropolitan Area First Ring Expressway ranked fourth, with 210,194 vehicles per day, while the Geumto–Yangjae section of the Gyeongbu Expressway came in fifth, with 205,346 vehicles per day. The rankings from third to fifth place remained unchanged from the previous year.

Among general national highways, the busiest section was the Seoul–Janghang Interchange segment of Route 77, with 205,815 vehicles per day. This was followed by the Gwangju City–Seongnam City segment of Route 3, the Sasadong–Suwon City segment of Route 42, the Janghang Interchange–Munbal Interchange segment of Route 77, and the Sasadong–Sampodong segment of Route 42. Most of the top-ranking sections were major arterial routes in the metropolitan area. The top five list was the same as the previous year.

Near Jamwon Interchange, Gyeongbu Expressway, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

For provincial roads, the busiest was the Cheoncheon Interchange–Seosuwon Interchange segment of Route 309, with an average of 127,538 vehicles per day. The Bongdam-eup–Cheoncheon Interchange segment on the same road ranked next. Other heavily trafficked routes included the Gangmae Interchange–Hongsan Interchange segment of Route 357, the Neungpyeong-dong–Bundang-gu segment of Local Route 57, and the Changwon City–Gimhae City segment of Route 1020.

Last year, the nationwide daily average traffic volume for all roads was calculated at 16,416 vehicles, up 0.9% from the previous year. This increase is attributed both to a rise in the number of registered vehicles and to greater traffic volume in the metropolitan area. Given that the average annual growth rate over the past 10 years has been about 1.2%, the pace of increase has somewhat slowed.

By road type, expressways accounted for approximately 74% of total traffic volume, with 52,888 vehicles per day. General national highways saw 13,071 vehicles per day, and provincial roads had 5,910 vehicles per day. By vehicle type, passenger cars accounted for 73%, with 12,003 vehicles per day. Trucks made up 4,110 vehicles (25%), and buses accounted for 303 vehicles (2%). The peak traffic hour was between 4 and 5 p.m., and Friday was the busiest day of the week.

The results of the road traffic volume survey are used in a variety of fields, including road construction planning, traffic demand analysis, road pavement design, and industrial research. Surveys were conducted at a total of 3,983 locations, including 727 expressway points. Hyojung Kim, Director General of the Road Bureau at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "We hope that these results will be widely used not only by government agencies and local road management authorities, but also by industry, academia, and research institutions."

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