Seven Seoul districts urge government to put Gyeongwon Line in rail undergrounding plan
In short
Seven Seoul districts along the Gyeongwon Line issued a joint petition on 21 October asking the government to publish its comprehensive railway undergrounding plan soon and to include the Yongsan to Dobongsan Station section, branch lines included. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport had planned to announce the plan by the end of last year but has not yet released details.
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Seven Seoul districts crossed by the Gyeongwon Line have jointly urged the government to announce soon its comprehensive plan for integrated development of undergrounded railways and to include the Gyeongwon Line in it. The districts are Yongsan, Seongdong, Dongdaemun, Jungnang, Seongbuk, Dobong and Nowon. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The Gyeongwon Line Undergrounding Promotion Council, the districts' joint body, issued a joint petition on 21 October at Dongdaemun District Office and announced it on 22 October, Yonhap reported. The districts formally asked the government to include the Gyeongwon Line section from Yongsan Station to Dobongsan Station, branch lines included, among the routes to be moved underground. Yonhap and Kyunghyang Shinmun listed those attending as Dongdaemun head Choi Dong-min (최동민), Dobong head Kim Dong-wook (김동욱) and deputy heads from the other five districts. Newsis said about 30 officials from the seven districts attended. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
According to Yonhap, the petition said the sections along the line, which have long suffered urban disconnection and noise and vibration, should be given priority. The council stressed that undergrounding is the minimum right of residents who have sacrificed for a long time, and would be a key driver of local revitalisation through development above the railway combining jobs, housing and culture. Kyunghyang Shinmun said the districts plan to develop the land above the tracks as space with jobs, housing and cultural functions. [ 1 , 2 ]
Newsis, citing Jungnang District, reported that the district acted jointly with the six others. It described the Gyeongchun and Jungang lines as branch lines of the Gyeongwon Line. Jungnang head Ryu Kyung-ki (류경기) was quoted as saying undergrounding is needed to relieve residents' long-standing inconvenience and reconnect divided areas, and that the district would keep working with neighbouring districts so that the three lines are included in the plan. [ 3 ]
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport had originally said it would announce a railway undergrounding plan, including the target routes, by the end of last year. All three outlets said it has not yet disclosed specifics. Kyunghyang Shinmun said the ministry must draw up the plan under the special act on railway undergrounding and integrated development of railway sites, enacted in January 2024. Newsis gave the date as 30 January 2024 and said the announcement has been delayed since the act was enacted. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Choi Dong-min, who chairs the council, called undergrounding the Gyeongwon Line an urgent task for balanced regional development. He said the council would keep working strongly with the local governments concerned so that the line is finally selected as a target route in the plan. [ 1 , 2 ]
Why it matters
The districts say undergrounding would end long-standing disruption from the surface railway and open land above the tracks for jobs, housing and culture. The documents report no government response, so which routes the plan will cover remains open.
Key facts
- The seven districts are Yongsan, Seongdong, Dongdaemun, Jungnang, Seongbuk, Dobong and Nowon, all crossed by the Gyeongwon Line. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- They issued a joint petition on 21 October at Dongdaemun District Office, and the matter was announced on 22 October. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- They asked that the Gyeongwon Line section from Yongsan Station to Dobongsan Station, branch lines included, be placed on the list of routes to be moved underground. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport had planned to announce its railway undergrounding plan, with the target routes, by the end of last year but has not disclosed specifics. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Newsis reported that about 30 officials from the seven districts attended. [ 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- The seven districts jointly called on the government to announce the comprehensive plan for integrated development of undergrounded railways soon and to reflect the Gyeongwon Line section in it. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The ministry originally planned to announce the plan with its target routes by the end of last year and has not yet made specifics public. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The districts cite long-standing urban disconnection and noise and vibration from the Gyeongwon Line. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- When the government will publish the comprehensive plan and which routes it will include. All three outlets say the ministry has not disclosed specifics; none reports a ministry response to the petition.
- The number of attendees. Only Newsis gives a figure (about 30 officials); Yonhap and Kyunghyang Shinmun list seven named officials as attending.