Demolition of Baegun Overpass on the 4th, What Are the Traffic Measures Prepared in Nam-gu, Gwangju...

Traffic Chaos Foreseen... Cooperation of Citizens Is Most Important

Baegun Overpass. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Although the demolition of Baegun Overpass will be in full swing starting from the 4th, traffic issues in the area remain a challenge.

With more than 140,000 vehicles passing daily and the construction of Urban Railway Line 2 underway, traffic congestion is inevitable.

Accordingly, Nam-gu District Office of Gwangju Metropolitan City held an in-depth discussion on the traffic countermeasures at the Nam-gu Office level regarding the demolition of Baegun Overpass on the 3rd.

Three measures were discussed that day.

First, 30 traffic guidance officers will be rotated and deployed at six key locations, including both directions entering Baegun Overpass and Baegun Square.

For both directions entering Baegun Overpass, 15 traffic guidance officers will be deployed, with five officers each at three locations: in front of Nam-gu Mirae Children's Hospital, in front of Unjingak Intersection, and in front of Mudeung Market Intersection.

They will guide drivers heading from Namgwangju Station toward Nongsung Square and those traveling in the opposite direction from Nongsung Square to Namgwangju Station on detour routes and other information.

Regarding the section passing through Baegun Square, traffic guidance officers will be stationed at Hoban Hillheim in Juwol-dong and in front of Gwangju Jeil Hospital in Baegun-dong.

This is to enable vehicles traveling from Gwangju University toward Daeseong Elementary School and from Daeseong Elementary School through Jinwol-dong toward the Jeonnam region to bypass Baegun Square via detour roads.

As the next measure, Nam-gu plans to propose to Gwangju City that toll discounts be applied to vehicles using the Second Ring Road to disperse the concentration of vehicles at Baegun Square.

Although Gwangju City has expressed that it is realistically difficult due to the need to resolve tax support issues first, Nam-gu will continue to make proposals.

The final measure is to use the disaster system to send detour guidance text messages to residents in the district regarding the demolition of Baegun Overpass and to conduct intensive parking enforcement around the construction zones and detour roads.

However, as the demolition approaches, since the detour roads remain close to temporary measures, it is expected that citizens’ inconvenience will continue for the time being.

In response, District Mayor Kim Byeong-nae said, “Baegun Square handles tens of thousands of vehicles daily, and with the demolition of Baegun Overpass, a critical facility for traffic flow, both directions will be blocked, making a traffic crisis inevitable. The active cooperation of Gwangju citizens is more important than anything else.”