Busan Gijang-gun Accelerates Efforts to Attract KTX-Eum Stop for Opening of Eastern Busan Area KTX Era

Published 29 Feb.2024 17:33(KST)

Updated 04 Aug.2025 20:03(KST)

Busan Gijang-gun announced on the 29th that it is accelerating efforts to attract a KTX-Eum stop station within the region.

KTX Ium Route Map.

KTX-Eum currently operates along the Jungang Line route between Seoul Cheongnyangni and Gyeongbuk Andong. Once construction of the Andong-Yeongcheon section is completed by the end of this year, the entire route from Seoul Cheongnyangni Station to Busan Bujeon Station will be open, enabling travel from Seoul to Busan in just 2 hours and 50 minutes.

The county expects that establishing a KTX-Eum stop in the Gijang area will create a transportation circulation network linked with metropolitan railroads (Busan-Ulsan-Yangsan) and urban railroads (Nopo-Jeonggwan Line, Gijang Line), significantly improving accessibility to Busan’s downtown and revolutionizing the regional transportation system by securing a nationwide transportation network.

In particular, the county holds the position that a KTX-Eum stop in Gijang is essential to actively respond to the transportation demand of 13 industrial complexes in the region, including the national project Southeast Radiation Medical Science Industrial Complex, to alleviate transportation inconveniences for tourists visiting the Osiria Tourist Complex, a mega project in the Southeast region, and to secure emergency transportation means within the world’s largest nuclear power plant cluster area.

Accordingly, since launching a county-wide signature campaign in 2021, the county has concentrated all administrative efforts on attracting the KTX-Eum stop station, including ▲completion of a feasibility study for attracting the KTX-Eum stop in October 2022 ▲submission of the attraction proposal and signature list to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in June 2023 ▲delivery of the attraction proposal and feasibility study results to Korail in September 2023 ▲and submission of the attraction requests to the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in November 2023.

Going forward, the county plans to further spread the atmosphere of public support involving all residents, continuously supplement and secure the justification and necessity for attraction based on the feasibility study results, and closely consult with related organizations such as Korail, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and Busan City to ensure the successful attraction of the KTX-Eum stop station.

County Governor Jeong Jong-bok emphasized, “Attracting the KTX-Eum stop station is an important project that will revolutionize the region’s transportation system along with the urban rail lines Jeonggwan Line and Gijang Line, leading Gijang’s long-term development,” adding, “We will definitely attract the KTX-Eum stop station to make Gijang-gun a key transportation hub with access in all directions.”