Construction of Busan Jungang-daero 'Seomyeon~Chungmu' Central Bus-Only Lane to Begin in March

7.9km BRT Stops 36 from Seomyeon Gwangmugyo to Chungmu-dong... Traffic Congestion Expected

Completion of Total 24.9km Connecting Haeundae, Dongnae, and Seomyeon Will Improve Traffic Speed

Central bus-only lane construction section from Seomyeon to Chungmu.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The dedicated central bus lane (BRT) section from Seomyeon Gwangmugyo to Chungmu-dong is entering full-scale construction.

Busan City (Acting Mayor Lee Byung-jin) announced on the 3rd that after selecting a construction company last November and completing various preliminary procedures, BRT construction will begin in March for a total section of 7.9 km.

This section will start with sidewalk maintenance work along the roadside and aims to open by the end of this year. In particular, after April, as construction of BRT stations in the center of the road intensifies, traffic congestion is expected to be inevitable.

Once the BRT in this section opens, the speed of buses operating on this route is expected to improve by 12% to a maximum of 28.3%, which is anticipated to increase citizens' satisfaction with public transportation usage.

When the Seomyeon~Chungmu section BRT is completed, a total of 24.9 km of BRT will be established, including the currently operating ▲Dongnae~Haeundae (10.4 km) and ▲Dongnae~Seomyeon Gwangmugyo (6.6 km) sections.

Busan City also plans to complete construction of the Seomyeon~Jurae (5.4 km) section by 2022.

Busan City intends to shift from a vehicle-centered to a people-centered public transportation system through the BRT network and expand the base of public transportation services for citizens.

Acting Mayor Lee Byung-jin said, “Although traffic congestion is expected to occur inevitably due to partial lane control on Jungang-daero caused by station construction, we will complete the construction as quickly as possible to minimize inconvenience to citizens and work to prevent safety accidents through traffic guidance in cooperation with the police agency.”

According to a ‘BRT Citizen Satisfaction Survey’ conducted last December with 1,000 Busan citizens, satisfaction was significantly high with ▲Satisfied 62.3%, ▲Neutral 22.6%, and ▲Dissatisfied 15.1%.