Green Light for Relocation of Railway Vehicle Maintenance Unit in Downtown Busan

Busan City Passes Preliminary Feasibility for Public Institution Relocation ... Plans to Move Next to Gangseo-gu Sinhang Station

View of Busan City Hall. Busan City announced that the relocation project of the Beomcheon-dong railway vehicle depot has gained momentum following the approval of the preliminary feasibility study.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The relocation plan for the Beomcheon-dong Railway Vehicle Maintenance Depot site, which has long been considered a nuisance dividing downtown Busan into two, has received a green light.

This is because Busan’s long-cherished project, the ‘Beomcheon-dong Railway Vehicle Maintenance Depot Relocation Project,’ has passed the preliminary feasibility study for public institutions conducted by the Korea Development Institute (KDI).

Busan City announced on the 11th that the relocation of the railway vehicle maintenance depot was directed to undergo a public institution preliminary feasibility study by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance’s Fiscal Project Evaluation Committee in July last year, was finally selected as a ‘public institution preliminary feasibility study target project’ in October, and since November, the Public Investment Management Center of the Korea Development Institute has been conducting the feasibility study.

The preliminary feasibility study results showed an economic feasibility (BC) of 1.50, profitability index (PI) of 1.3, and a comprehensive evaluation (AHP) of 0.663. Generally, an AHP above 0.5 indicates feasibility.

The railway vehicle depot, constructed in 1904, has been located in the heart of Busan’s original downtown for over 100 years, hindering urban expansion and causing the surrounding areas to be cut off. It has been identified as a facility that accelerates urban slumification. Because of this, citizens have consistently demanded that the outdated railway facilities be relocated to the outskirts.

Busan City has been continuously consulting with central government agencies regarding the relocation plan for the railway vehicle maintenance depot based on the results of studies conducted to relocate the outdated railway facilities and efficiently utilize urban land resources.

The passing of this preliminary feasibility study is regarded as a great achievement jointly accomplished by the public, private, and government sectors through efforts since 2007, including Busan City, local lawmakers, the Busan Downtown Railway Facility Relocation Promotion Committee’s one million citizen signature campaign, citizen rallies, various campaigns, and persistent relocation requests to central government agencies.

With a total investment of 629.3 billion KRW, including 497.4 billion KRW for relocation costs, the plan is to complete the relocation of the railway vehicle maintenance depot to near Busan New Port Station in Songjeong-dong, Gangseo-gu by 2027, and to develop the 241,000㎡ relocation site into an innovative space for knowledge-based industry infrastructure, a future growth engine.

Busan City plans to advance the relocation project schedule, originally set to start in 2024, to coincide with the commencement of the Busanjin Station container yard (CY) relocation construction in 2022, simultaneously proceeding with compensation and site preparation for the railway facility relocation project in the Songjeong district.

To this end, in the second half of this year, Busan City will begin the basic planning and feasibility study for the development of the Beomcheon-dong railway vehicle maintenance depot relocation site.

Byun Sung-wan, Acting Mayor of Busan, said, “Since this is a project that Busan citizens have long awaited, we will shorten the project period as much as possible,” adding, “The Beomcheon-dong Railway Vehicle Maintenance Depot Relocation Project is one of the core projects of the Busan Grand Transformation that will open Busan’s 100-year future and will dramatically change the topography of Busan’s original downtown.”