Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's 2021 Presidential Work Report Today
Focus on National Balanced Development Policy More Than Any Other Year
Expansion of Local Metropolitan Transportation...Improving Regional Quality of Life
[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) will focus on policies for national balanced development this year. It plans to prepare improvement measures to expand metropolitan transportation infrastructure in regions with poor transportation and supply housing platforms linked with jobs and residences in underdeveloped areas to lead regional innovation.
Minister Byeon Changheum of MOLIT reported the 2021 MOLIT work plan containing these details to President Moon Jaein on the 16th.
"Focusing on Balanced Development More Than Any Other Year"... Expansion of Transportation Networks
MOLIT plans to concentrate on pursuing mutual growth between local areas and the metropolitan area through national land balanced development policies this year.
A MOLIT official explained, "This work plan sets major goals such as housing stability, national balanced development, visible innovation performance, and protecting citizens' safety and lives," adding, "Especially, policies for national balanced development will be promoted intensively more than any other year."
First, MOLIT will prepare improvement measures to revitalize metropolitan railroads in regions with poor transportation conditions by the first half of this year. Considering balanced development and ensuring smooth mobility rights, the 4th National Railroad Network Construction Plan and the basic and implementation plans for metropolitan transportation will be established.
Operations of 260km/h-class vehicles will be expanded on the Jungang Line and Jungbu Inland Line, and by the end of the year, a plan for developing technical standards and core technologies for introducing 400km/h-class vehicles will be established. Major projects such as the commencement of the Dongseo Expressway (Chuncheon~Sokcho), the second phase of the Honam High-Speed Railway (Gwangju Songjeong~Mokpo), and the Donghae Line (Busan~Pohang) will also be steadily promoted.
Fifteen national balanced development projects involving roads, railroads, and airports will be accelerated with a budget of 400 billion KRW invested this year. A mid- to long-term improvement plan for 99 aging railroad stations with safety concerns will be established by October, and facility improvements for eight stations will begin in the first half of the year.
Promoting Local 'Housing Platform' Projects... Creating Success Cases
MOLIT will actively promote the 'housing platform' project linking housing, jobs, and living SOC in small and medium-sized cities and rural, farming, mountain, and fishing villages. The plan is to create successful cases and expand them nationwide. Representative types include elderly care, education-linked, job-linked, and retiree town types, and MOLIT will collaborate with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to conduct pilot projects.
Additionally, MOLIT will foster innovation growth hubs within metropolitan areas and expand metropolitan transportation networks centered on these hubs to establish a virtuous cycle structure of talent, capital, and jobs in local areas. By the second half of the year, a system will be established to allow metropolitan local governments to form metropolitan area plans in specific fields through solidarity and cooperation, and transportation, tourism, and industrial cooperation plans agreed upon between cities and provinces will also be established.
To foster economic hubs by metropolitan area, five local metropolitan cities will create high-density innovation districts where industry, housing, and culture converge in downtown areas. Basic plans have already been established for Daegu and Gwangju, which were selected, and three additional project sites will be sequentially selected.
Accelerating Urban Regeneration... Local and Metropolitan Area Package Projects
An innovation city Biz Park utilizing clusters will be created in May, and economic hubs will be fostered in regions through leading regional New Deal projects such as the previous electric line project. In Gyeongbuk, where Korea Expressway Corporation is located, a smart logistics hub city will be established, and in Jeonbuk, where the National Pension Service is located, a financial innovation big data platform will be built.
Regarding the Happy City, specialized plans by sector will be prepared in the first half of this year and reflected in the third phase (2021?2030) of Happy City construction, and an industry-academia-research innovation ecosystem will be created.
Urban regeneration New Deal projects will be promoted rapidly to complete about 40 sites within the year. Achievements such as supplying 200 living SOC facilities and 1,000 public rental housing units will also be actively pursued. A pilot project for public-private cooperative urban regeneration REITs, moving away from public-led initiatives, will be promoted, and investment activation through spatial REITs and the mother fund will be supported.
MOLIT will also promote a 'Metropolitan Area-Local Package' project linking local areas with low business feasibility and the metropolitan area with large development profits in the second half of the year. MOLIT explained, "To expand resources for national balanced development, institutional reform measures such as development congestion charges will be reviewed with related ministries."
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