Gwangju City Launches 24-Hour Emergency Task Force for Pothole Repairs

Mayor Lee Yong-seop Issues Special Order to Mobilize All Available Personnel and Equipment for Rapid Recovery

On the morning of the 4th, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, visited the emergency repair site of the damaged road (pothole) near the Seobu Agricultural and Marine Products Distribution Center in Maewol-dong, Seo-gu, to inspect the restoration work. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City has formed a special task force to conduct 24-hour on-site inspections and intensive repairs in response to the surge in pothole (road depression) occurrences during the thawing season.

Mayor Lee Yong-seop said on the morning of the 4th, “Due to heavy snowfall last winter, a large amount of de-icing agents such as calcium chloride were used, causing numerous potholes to form on the road surfaces, threatening the safety of citizens. Since this issue is directly related to the lives and safety of citizens, the Transportation Construction Bureau, the General Construction Headquarters, and the road departments of the five autonomous districts must quickly establish a collaborative system and make every effort to urgently respond to pothole repairs,” giving special instructions.

Accordingly, Gwangju immediately organized a “Pothole Repair Special Task Force” consisting of five teams and 25 members to respond swiftly on-site.

Gwangju confirmed that about 8,200 potholes occurred within the jurisdiction during January and February due to heavy snowfall and rainfall last winter, and plans to significantly increase repair personnel to complete pothole repair work as quickly as possible.

Additionally, a road inspection team will operate continuously to carry out repair work immediately upon discovering potholes, aiming to prevent safety accidents among citizens.

On the same day, Mayor Lee visited a pothole site near the Gwangju Western Agricultural and Marine Products Wholesale Market to check the emergency repair situation.

At the site, Mayor Lee once again emphasized to the relevant departments, “Ensure thorough measures so that accidents and damages caused by potholes are minimized by mobilizing all available personnel and equipment for swift restoration and repair.”

He also instructed, “Execute the already secured budget early to focus on emergency pothole repairs, and secure supplementary budgets at the city council’s temporary session held in March to establish fundamental measures such as optimal pavement repair methods to minimize road resurfacing and cracks.”

Meanwhile, Gwangju plans to promptly take follow-up actions upon receiving damage reports related to tire damage and other citizen losses caused by potholes through the Korea Local Finance Association’s public property damage liability insurance.