Haenam Hwawon - Sinan Aphae Road Construction Project Resident Briefing Held

A Breakthrough Opportunity Expected for Revitalizing Haenam Tourism, Including Osiano Tourist Complex

Undersea Tunnel Plan for Haenam Section (Photo by Haenam-gun)

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Hyun] As the road construction project connecting Haewon in Haenam and Aphae in Sinan on National Route 77 is being actively promoted, expectations for revitalizing tourism in Haenam County are rising.

According to Haenam County on the 11th, the project connects Maewol-ri in Haewon-myeon, Haenam County to Aphaedo in Sinan County, with a total length of 13.49 km and a project cost of 500.5 billion KRW. Of this, the Haenam section is planned to be 5.95 km with two lanes each way (4 lanes total).

The main project includes connecting Haewon in Haenam to Dallido in Mokpo via a 2.73 km underwater tunnel, including rest facilities and an observatory.

Upon completion, the project will connect the three cities/counties of Haenam, Sinan, and Mokpo via a sea bridge and underwater tunnel, playing a significant role in improving residents' living conditions by linking with the Seohaean Expressway and Muan International Airport High-Speed Railway.

In particular, accessibility to the Haenam Osiano Tourist Complex and Solar City Tourism Leisure Enterprise City will be greatly improved, expected to boost tourism revitalization.

Within the section, Haenam's tourism resources such as the Haenam Osiano Tourist Complex, Solar City Enterprise City, and Usuyeong Uldolmok are connected with Mokpo New Port, Seohaean Expressway, and marine tourist destinations in Wando and Sinan.

Especially, Haenam County is promoting the construction of coastal roads between Mokpo Gudeung Lighthouse and Yanghwa, and between Haewon Husan and Jangsu. Starting from Maewol-ri in Haewon, infrastructure will be established connecting about 23 km of coastal roads from Mokpo Gudeung Lighthouse to Jangsu-ri and the Osiano Tourist Complex.

This section boasts beautiful beach scenery so remarkable it is called the jewel of the southwest sea, and is expected to become a representative scenic coastal road of the southwest region.

In this regard, on the 10th, a residents' briefing session for the National Route 77 road construction project was held under the supervision of the Iksan Regional Construction and Management Administration, where various development plans such as making the underwater tunnel and observatory tourist attractions and securing traffic safety were discussed.

Haenam County plans to collect additional opinions and deliver them to the Iksan Regional Construction and Management Administration, as many residents could not attend due to COVID-19 prevention measures.

The road construction project for the last unconnected section of National Route 77 between Haewon and Aphae gained momentum after being exempted from the preliminary feasibility study as part of the 2019 National Balanced Development Project selection. Construction is scheduled to begin in September and is targeted for completion in 2027.

County Governor Myeong Hyun-gwan stated, “The connection between Haewon and Aphae will complete accessibility to the coastal tourism road of the southwest coastal area, which accounts for 45% of the national coastline, and is expected to bring revolutionary logistics cost reductions. As it is also expected to be a breakthrough for tourism revitalization, we will make thorough preparations to ensure infrastructure construction is well executed.”