Dobong-gu Holds Press Conference and Reads Statement at 3 PM on the 25th in Front of the Board of Audit and Inspection, Opposing the Ground-Level Construction of GTX-C Line Dobong Section; Submits Public Interest Audit Request Regarding Unauthorized Change from Underground to Ground-Level Plan for Changdong Station to Dobongsan Station Section (5.4 km)
GTX-C Line Dobong Section Surface Construction Strong Opposition Struggle Committee Audit Office Public Interest Audit Request Press Conference (January 25, 2022, Audit Office) (Lee Dong-jin, Dobong District Mayor, holding a microphone)
Submission of Public Interest Audit Request to the Board of Audit and Inspection by the Anti-Elevation Struggle Committee for the Dobong Section of the GTX-C Line (January 25, 2022, Board of Audit and Inspection)
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Dobong-gu (Mayor Lee Dong-jin) submitted a public interest audit request to the Board of Audit and Inspection at 3 p.m. on the 25th, opposing the change of the entire Seoul section of the GTX-C line from underground to aboveground only in the Dobong section.
On the day of the public interest audit request, resident representatives of the ‘GTX-C Line Dobong Section Aboveground Opposition Struggle Committee (Chairman Heo Seul-gi)’, Mayor Lee Dong-jin of Dobong-gu, National Assembly members In Jae-geun and Oh Ki-hyung, and city and district council members held a press conference in front of the Board of Audit and Inspection in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, reading a statement opposing the aboveground plan and submitting the public interest audit request.
The GTX-C line is a privately funded metropolitan express train line extending approximately 74.8 km from Suwon to Deokjeong Station in Yangju City. It was included in the ‘2nd National Railroad Network Construction Plan’ in 2011 and finalized through the ‘Feasibility Study and Basic Plan for the Metropolitan Express Railroad C Line’ in October 2020 as part of the national railroad network plan.
At that time in October 2020, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport confirmed the entire Seoul section would be constructed underground along the existing tracks in the ‘Basic Plan for the Metropolitan Express Railroad C Line Private Investment Facility Project,’ with a high economic feasibility indicator B/C of 1.33. However, just before signing the implementation agreement with the Hyundai Construction Consortium, the preferred bidder, the plan was suddenly changed from underground to aboveground only in the Dobong section in Seoul.
Originally, the line was to share the Gyeongwon Line No. 1 tracks near Deokjeong Station to Dobongsan Station, with a new underground exclusive track branching south near Dobongsan Station. Instead, the 5.4 km section from Dobongsan Station to Chang-dong Station was changed to share the aboveground No. 1 line tracks.
Dobong-gu and the Struggle Committee pointed out that this change reduces project costs by hundreds of billions of won for the private operator but causes enormous damage to nearby residents due to noise, dust, and vibration at speeds of 150 km/h.
Moreover, with about 260 daily operations of the No. 1 subway line passing through the Dobong section, adding GTX-C line operations is likely to increase intervals between trains due to interference between the two lines. Additionally, since the SRT extension line (Suseo to Uijeongbu) will also share the GTX-C line, the section between Chang-dong Station and Dobongsan Station will effectively share three lines: No. 1, GTX-C, and SRT.
Accordingly, Dobong-gu and the Struggle Committee have repeatedly requested explanations and countermeasures from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Since January 10 of this year, they have conducted resident signature campaigns and petitions to the Blue House, but the Ministry has not clearly expressed its position other than attributing the issue to a ‘simple mistake’ by the person in charge.
On the day, Mayor Lee Dong-jin of Dobong-gu criticized, “After a long period of 10 years, the sudden change in the GTX-C line project confirmed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport just before signing the implementation agreement with the Hyundai Construction Consortium, the preferred bidder, is suspicious to anyone. This clearly violates the underground construction of the Dobong section, a core element of the ‘Basic Plan,’ the higher-level plan that serves as the standard for the C line project, and neglects the safety and convenience of Dobong residents, who should be the beneficiaries of the project.”
He added, “We will use all means, including a strong resident signature campaign and the audit request to the Board of Audit and Inspection, to block the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s project change plan.”
Meanwhile, the public interest audit request system refers to a system where a qualified person can request an audit from the Board of Audit and Inspection on specific matters when public institutions’ administrative actions are illegal or unfair and significantly harm the public interest.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
