Gyeonggi governor asks land minister to include 40 rail projects in national plan
Version 2: Additional coverage of the same request has been added, with Korea Economic Daily’s headline confirming the 40-project list and naming GTX-D among the projects; no new facts about the meeting or the ministry’s response have emerged.
In short
Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae asked Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Hong Ji-seon to include 40 railway projects proposed by the province in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan, the province said on Oct 5, describing a meeting held on Oct 2. The list includes the GTX D, E, F, G and H lines, the KTX Paju extension and the SRT Uijeongbu extension, according to Yonhap; Korea Economic Daily’s headline also cited GTX-D among the 40 projects. Choo also asked for the plan’s new project scale to be expanded to more than 100 trillion won and repeated a call to exempt new-town transport projects from preliminary feasibility studies; Hong said Gyeonggi’s voice would be reflected as much as possible.
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Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae asked Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Hong Ji-seon to include 40 railway projects proposed by the province, among them the GTX D, E, F, G and H lines, in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan, the province said on Oct 5. Yonhap reported that the request was made at a meeting on Oct 2; Newsis reported the same request, citing “40 projects,” and Korea Economic Daily’s headline said Gyeonggi asked for the projects, including GTX-D, to be reflected in the national railway network. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
According to Yonhap, the 40 projects also include the KTX Paju extension and the SRT Uijeongbu extension. The province said these are among rail projects that gathered enough signatures to become a provincial petition and appear in the Gyeonggi regional pledges of the Lee Jae-myung government’s five-year plan. The 5th plan sets the basic direction for expanding the national rail network over the 10 years from 2026 to 2035. Gyeonggi said new rail projects not reflected in the plan have difficulty moving to follow-up procedures, and that it is continuing to consult the central government. [ 1 ]
Choo also asked the ministry to consult the Ministry of Planning and Budget and other relevant agencies on expanding the plan’s new project scale to more than 100 trillion won, Yonhap reported. She repeated a proposal she had raised at a National Assembly policy discussion on follow-up to the government’s Aug 13 measures, on strengthening self-sufficiency in third-phase new towns and speeding their construction: exempting transport projects new towns need from preliminary feasibility studies. [ 1 ]
“When you go to new town sites, the transport network is the biggest problem,” Choo said, according to Yonhap. She said the government always speaks of “transport first, move-in later” but that in reality people often move in without transport conditions having been expanded, and that a preliminary feasibility study at that point takes a long time or fails to produce the desired result. She said the government should forecast transport demand from the stage of supplying land and prepare the needed network at the same time, and that measures such as exempting post-move-in transport facilities from the study should be considered. [ 1 ]
Hong replied that he would ensure Gyeonggi Province’s voice is reflected as much as possible in rail and roads, including metropolitan transport, according to the report. He said the preliminary feasibility study issue was something he had raised since his time in Gyeonggi Province, and that he would work personally on matters outside the ministry’s remit, appealing at a cabinet meeting and persuading the related ministries, Yonhap reported. [ 1 ]
The Oct 2 meeting followed earlier requests on the same issue. On July 27, Choo met then-land minister Kim Youn-deok and asked for Gyeonggi rail projects, including a southern Gyeonggi metropolitan railway registered as the first petition of the current provincial administration, to be included in the plan. On July 24, she asked Planning and Budget Minister Park Hong-keun to expand the plan’s new projects to more than 100 trillion won, according to Yonhap. [ 1 ]
Why it matters
The 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan sets the basic direction for national rail investment over the 10 years from 2026 to 2035, and the province says projects left out of it have difficulty moving to follow-up procedures. Whether the GTX extensions and the KTX Paju and SRT Uijeongbu extensions can advance therefore turns on the plan. Yonhap reports a broad pledge from the minister to reflect the province’s voice as much as possible, but no commitment to specific projects or figures.
Key facts
- Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae met Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Hong Ji-seon on Oct 2 and asked that 40 railway projects proposed by the province be reflected in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan. [ 1 ]
- The 40 projects include the GTX D, E, F, G and H lines, the KTX Paju extension and the SRT Uijeongbu extension, according to the province; Korea Economic Daily’s headline also cited GTX-D among the 40 projects. [ 1 , 3 ]
- The 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan sets the basic direction for expanding the national rail network over the 10 years from 2026 to 2035. [ 1 ]
- Choo asked the ministry to consult the Ministry of Planning and Budget and other relevant agencies on expanding the plan’s new project scale to more than 100 trillion won. [ 1 ]
- Choo repeated her call to exempt transport projects needed in new towns from preliminary feasibility studies. [ 1 ]
- Hong said the ministry would reflect Gyeonggi Province’s voice as much as possible on rail and roads, including metropolitan transport. [ 1 ]
- Gyeonggi said new rail projects not reflected in the plan have difficulty moving to follow-up procedures, and that it is continuing to consult the central government. [ 1 ]
- Choo made earlier requests on the same issue to then-land minister Kim Youn-deok on July 27 and to Planning and Budget Minister Park Hong-keun on July 24. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae asked Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Hong Ji-seon to have 40 railway projects proposed by the province reflected in the national railway network plan. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The project list includes the GTX D, E, F, G and H lines, the KTX Paju extension and the SRT Uijeongbu extension, according to the province; Korea Economic Daily’s headline also cited GTX-D among the 40 projects. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Land Minister Hong Ji-seon said the ministry would reflect Gyeonggi Province’s voice as much as possible on rail and roads, including metropolitan transport, according to Yonhap. [ 1 ]
Still unclear
- Which of the 40 projects the ministry will actually include, and whether the request to expand new projects to more than 100 trillion won or to exempt new-town transport projects from preliminary feasibility studies will be adopted. Hong said Gyeonggi’s voice would be reflected as much as possible, but the documents report no commitment to specific projects or figures.
- Where the Oct 2 meeting between Choo Mi-ae and Hong Ji-seon took place. No document gives a venue or city for the meeting; Yonhap’s report carries an Uijeongbu dateline but does not say where the meeting was held.
- Whether Newsis and Korea Economic Daily carried further detail on the meeting beyond their headlines. The article text retrieved from both outlets covered unrelated stories, so only their headlines support this event.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- July 24: Choo Mi-ae asks Planning and Budget Minister Park Hong-keun to expand the plan’s new railway projects to more than 100 trillion won. [ 1 ]
- July 27: Choo meets then-land minister Kim Youn-deok and asks for Gyeonggi rail projects, including a southern Gyeonggi metropolitan railway registered as the provincial administration’s first petition, to be reflected in the 5th national plan. [ 1 ]
- Oct 2: Choo meets Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Hong Ji-seon and asks that 40 Gyeonggi-proposed railway projects, including the GTX D, E, F, G and H lines, be reflected in the 5th National Railway Network Construction Plan. [ 1 ]
- Yonhap publishes its report on the province’s Oct 5 announcement of the request. [ 1 ]
- Newsis publishes its report on the request. [ 2 ]
- Korea Economic Daily publishes a headline on the request citing GTX-D among the 40 projects. [ 3 ]