Chuseok Holiday Traffic Begins: Seoul to Busan Takes 6 Hours 40 Minutes

On the morning of October 3, the first day of the Chuseok holiday, heavy traffic congestion is occurring on expressways across the country due to vehicles heading to hometowns. The congestion in the homebound direction is expected to peak between 11 AM and 12 PM.

Expected travel times between major cities as of 10 AM. Korea Expressway Corporation website

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According to the Korea Expressway Corporation, as of 10 AM, the estimated travel times by car from the Seoul tollgate to major cities nationwide are as follows: Busan 6 hours 40 minutes, Ulsan 7 hours 20 minutes, Mokpo 6 hours 20 minutes, Daegu 6 hours 10 minutes, Gwangju 5 hours 20 minutes, Gangneung 4 hours 20 minutes, and Daejeon 3 hours 30 minutes.

The estimated travel times to Seoul are: Busan 5 hours 20 minutes, Ulsan 5 hours 10 minutes, Mokpo 4 hours, Daegu 4 hours 30 minutes, Gwangju 3 hours 50 minutes, Gangneung 2 hours 40 minutes, and Daejeon 1 hour 39 minutes.

As of 8 AM, congestion was reported on the Gyeongbu Expressway toward Busan, including sections near Osan to Namsa, Bukcheon-an to Cheonan, and from the Oksan Interchange to the Cheongju Interchange.

On the Seohaean Expressway toward Mokpo, traffic is stop-and-go near the Sunsan Tunnel to the Seohae Bridge. Similarly, on the Seoul-Yangyang Expressway toward Yangyang, congestion is occurring between Gangil and Seojong.

On the Yeongdong Expressway toward Gangneung, traffic is slow near the Banwol Tunnel to Bugok and from the Singal Interchange to the Yangji Tunnel. On the Jungbu Naeryuk Expressway toward Changwon, congestion is seen from the Yeoju Interchange to near Gamgok as well.

The corporation expects that congestion in the homebound direction will be most severe between 11 AM and 12 PM, and will ease between 7 PM and 8 PM.

On this day, an estimated 5.24 million vehicles are expected to be on the move nationwide. About 440,000 vehicles are projected to travel from the Seoul metropolitan area to other regions, while 430,000 vehicles are expected to move from other regions to the metropolitan area.

The corporation explained, "Due to homebound traffic, congestion is heavier toward the provinces compared to an average Friday."

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