The Province's First New Transportation Mode 'Tram' 34.2km Construction
Average 35-Minute Travel from Dongtan to Seoul Samsung Station
[Asia Economy Reporter La Young-cheol] The 'Dongtan Urban Railway' project, which will introduce the eco-friendly new transportation mode 'tram' for the first time in Gyeonggi Province, is set to be fully launched with the goal of opening in 2027.
Gyeonggi Province announced on the 1st that "the Dongtan Urban Railway project received basic plan approval from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 31st."
The 'Dongtan Urban Railway' is part of the metropolitan traffic improvement measures for Dongtan 2 New Town, investing a total of 977.3 billion KRW to introduce trams across two sections: Suwon Mangpo Station~Dongtan Station~Osan Station and Byeongjeom Station~Dongtan Station~Vehicle Depot.
The total length is 34.2 km, with 36 stations and one vehicle depot to be constructed, and it is planned so that most areas of Dongtan 2 New Town can access the tram on foot.
Additionally, it will be connected to major railway networks such as the Bundang Line (Mangpo Station), Line 1 (Osan Station, Byeongjeom Station), and GTX-A·SRT (Dongtan Station), allowing an average travel time of about 35 minutes to Seoul Samsung Station.
In particular, the 1.8 km extension from Suwon Mangpo Station to Hwaseong Banwoldong, which was not originally planned, has been included in the basic plan, and the higher-level plan, Gyeonggi Province Urban Railway Network Construction Plan amendment (approved on July 23, 2021), is being pursued simultaneously to shorten administrative procedure periods.
The Dongtan tram is expected to be introduced as a catenary-free system. One train set consists of 5 modules and can carry 246 passengers, with a total of 39 train sets operating at 8-minute intervals, planned to serve more than 130,000 passengers daily.
The specific vehicle system (battery type, hydrogen fuel cell type, etc.) will be decided during the design phase after collecting opinions from residents and experts and considering future technological development trends.
The design, construction, and operation will be led by Hwaseong City, with Osan City and Suwon City cooperating. After procedures such as basic and detailed design, construction is planned to start in 2023 with the goal of opening as early as 2027.
Lee Gye-sam, Director of the Gyeonggi Province Railroad, Port and Logistics Bureau, stated, "We have completed a basic plan that systematically connects with SRT, GTX, Bundang Line, Line 1, etc., in cooperation with Hwaseong City, Osan City, and Suwon City."
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