On the 29th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said that it had confirmed measures to improve wide-area traffic for the 3rd new cities, Namyangju Wangsuk and Goyang Changneung, after a deliberation by the Metropolitan Transportation Committee. The main point is to significantly expand investment in public transportation such as subways to allow 30-minute commute to downtown Seoul.
A total of 2.3 trillion won will be invested in 18 projects, including Seoul Gangdong-Hanam-Namyangju urban railroads, in measures to improve traffic in Wangsuk New Town, Namyangju, where 66,000 households will be built. Major projects include the extension of Line 9 (1.5 trillion won) from Namyangju to Gangdong in Seoul, and the Gyeongchun Line Station and Gyeongui Jungang Line Station where GTX-B stops. The extension project for Line 9 is aimed at opening in 2028. Preliminary feasibility studies, such as the route and location of the station, remain undecided. When these projects are completed, it is expected to take 25 minutes to Seoul Station and 45 minutes to Gangnam Station.
In the new town of Changneung, where 38,000 households are scheduled to be built, 2.2 trillion won will be invested in 16 projects, including the urban railway project from Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul to downtown Goyang. At its core, it is aiming to be completed in 2029 as an urban railroad between Goyang and Eunpyeong, Seoul, which connects Goyang City Hall from Saejeol Station, which is a transfer station for Subway Line 6 and West Line. The construction of Changneung Station on the GTX-A line is also being promoted. Through this, the time from Changneung New Town to Seoul Station is reduced from 40 minutes to 10 minutes and from Yeouido to 50 minutes to 25 minutes.
However, the new town of Changneung starts moving in from 2026, and the expected completion of the Goyang Line is 3 years later in 2029, which is expected to cause inconvenience in transportation for the initial residents. An official of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said, “Up until now, the residents of the new city were concerned about the deficit, and they were reluctant to establish and extend bus routes, so the inconvenience was great.” “I will do it.”
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