Traffic Congestion for Returning Home and Back to the City from Morning... Peak Congestion Around 3 PM

On the 24th, the start of the Lunar New Year holiday, the number of vehicles heading home increased near Suwon Singil IC on the Gyeongbuk Expressway, in the direction of Busan (left side). / Suwon = Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dong-hyun] On the day of Seollal, the 25th, traffic congestion in both the outbound and inbound directions on nationwide expressways is expected to begin around 9 a.m. and peak around 3 to 4 p.m.

According to Korea Expressway Corporation, as of 10 a.m. that day, the estimated travel times from Seoul Tollgate to major cities nationwide are ▲Busan 7 hours 30 minutes ▲Gwangju 5 hours ▲Ulsan 7 hours ▲Daegu 4 hours 50 minutes ▲Daejeon 2 hours 50 minutes ▲Gangneung 3 hours.

When traveling by bus, the times are ▲Busan 5 hours 50 minutes ▲Gwangju 3 hours 20 minutes ▲Ulsan 5 hours 20 minutes ▲Daegu 3 hours 10 minutes ▲Daejeon 1 hour 30 minutes ▲Gangneung 2 hours 50 minutes.

Outbound traffic congestion is expected to be the worst around 3 to 4 p.m. and to ease by around 11 p.m. or midnight on the 26th. Inbound traffic congestion is expected to gradually ease after peaking between 3 and 5 p.m., clearing by around 2 to 3 a.m. on the 26th.

The Expressway Corporation forecasts that 6.04 million vehicles will use the expressways nationwide that day. Vehicles leaving the metropolitan area for local regions are expected to number 480,000, and vehicles heading toward the metropolitan area from local regions are also expected to be around 480,000.

A representative from the Expressway Corporation explained, "This Seollal holiday has a shorter holiday period than last year, so traffic volume is higher," adding, "Compared to the overall average, the traffic volume is somewhat higher."