Ministry of Land, Daegu City, Gyeongbuk Province, Railroad Corporation, and Railroad Authority Sign Business Agreement
First Metropolitan Railroad Outside Capital Region... Gumi·Chilgok~Daegu~Gyeongsan Route
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Dong-wook] The construction project of the Daegu Metropolitan Railroad connecting Gumi and Chilgok in Gyeongbuk, Daegu, and Gyeongsan in Gyeongbuk is being actively promoted with the goal of opening by the end of 2023.
As the first metropolitan railroad project outside the Seoul metropolitan area, once completed, the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region will be connected into a single living zone within 40 minutes. In particular, Seodaegu Station will be reborn as a hub station shared with the KTX high-speed rail and the Daegu Industrial Line, and is expected to serve as a transportation hub for the Daegu area in the future.
According to Daegu City on the 5th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Daegu City, Gyeongsangbuk-do, the Korea Rail Network Authority, and Korea Railroad Corporation signed an agreement at the end of December last year to jointly promote this project.
The Daegu Metropolitan Railroad is the first project outside the Seoul metropolitan area to introduce electric trains by upgrading existing conventional railway lines. A total of 7 stations will be installed along a 61.8 km section. The total project cost is 151.5 billion KRW.
The stations are located at Gumi, Sagok (new), Waegwan, Seodaegu (new), Daegu, Dongdaegu, and Gyeongsan, totaling 7 locations. It is planned to operate 61 one-way trips per day (15-minute intervals during peak hours, 20-minute intervals during off-peak hours).
Through this agreement, the national government (Network Authority) will begin construction of the metropolitan railroad this year, local governments will bear vehicle ownership and operating losses, and the Railroad Corporation will operate the trains, with roles assigned to each institution.
The Daegu Metropolitan Railroad is scheduled to be completed in the first half of 2023 and opened by the end of the same year after comprehensive test operations.
Kim Seon-tae, Director of the Railway Bureau at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated, "The Daegu Metropolitan Railroad is a highly efficient project that operates electric trains by upgrading conventional railways, and the rational establishment of roles among the national government, local governments, and corporations and authorities is expected to facilitate smooth project progress."
Yoon Jeong-hee, Director of the Transportation Bureau of Daegu City, said, "This project will create a practical single living zone for 5.5 million residents of Daegu and Gyeongbuk," and added, "We expect it to become a new growth engine for balanced regional development through the establishment of transportation infrastructure suitable for the administrative integration of Daegu and Gyeongbuk."
Baek Seong-gil, Director of the Job and Economy Office of Gyeongbuk Province, said, "In the future, through the metropolitan railroad in the era of the integrated new airport and Daegu-Gyeongbuk integration, we will be able to resolve transportation inconveniences between cities in Daegu and Gyeongbuk and secure a metropolitan living zone."
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