“Make the Ilsan Bridge toll free”… Goyang·Gimpo·Paju Mayors urge-Maeil Economy

“Make the Ilsan Bridge toll free”

Goyang Mayor Lee Jae-joon, Gimpo Mayor Jeong Ha-young, and Paju City Mayor Choi Jong-hwan made a joint statement on the morning of the 3rd at the Ilsan Bridge Office.

They said, “Ilsan Bridge is not only the only toll bridge among the 27 bridges that cross the Han River, but also has a toll fee of 660 won per kilometer, which is more than six times higher than that of major private roads.”

He pointed out, “Even though the Ilsan Bridge was installed to expand the traffic rights of citizens in the northwestern part of Gyeonggi-do, which is a traffic marginalized area, it is infringing on the traffic rights of citizens by collecting high tolls by taking advantage of the fact that there is no other option.”

In particular, “Ilsan Bridge applied a high interest rate at the time of its acquisition despite the low risk of loss due to the Minimum Operational Income Guarantee (MRG) agreement,” he said. “In the case of a subordinated borrowing of KRW 36 billion, a high interest rate of 20% was set and enormous interest was called a toll. In the name of the citizens, he said.

The mayors said they plan to continue joint response until free tolls are implemented.

Ilsan Bridge was opened in 2008 with private capital investment, and is currently being managed by Ilsan Bridge Co., Ltd., and paid operation is planned for 30 years. Ilsan Bridge is an essential infrastructure linking Goyang, Paju, Incheon, and Gimpo, with an average of 80,000 vehicles per day.

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