[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Koo Dae-sun] Gyeongbuk Province announced on the 26th that the Seongju~Daegu Expressway, a long-awaited project in the Yeongho and Nam regions, has been selected as a project subject to a preliminary feasibility study.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance held the 5th Fiscal Project Evaluation Committee meeting on the same day and officially announced the projects selected for the 3rd preliminary feasibility study in 2022.
For the 3rd preliminary feasibility study, six projects from four ministries including the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Health and Welfare were selected, and the Seongju~Daegu Expressway was the only expressway included.
This preliminary feasibility study project is expected to officially commence within 1 to 2 months after going through preliminary procedures such as selecting the investigation agency and forming a specialized research team.
The expressway included in this plan is an 18.8 km, four-lane (two lanes each way) construction project, covering the Seongju~Daegu section of the Muju~Daegu segment, which is the only missing link in the national road network’s east-west axis 3 (Gimje~Pohang).
With a planned budget of 954.2 billion KRW, this project was included as a key promotion project in the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s 2nd Expressway Construction Plan (2021?2025) announced in February and was also selected as a campaign pledge of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration.
The Seongju~Daegu Expressway underwent two preliminary feasibility studies in 1999 and 2017 but was rejected due to lack of economic feasibility, and after several years of stagnation, this is the third attempt.
This expressway is essential for balanced national development, east-west harmony, linking the economic, transportation, and logistics axes of the Pan-Huanghae and Pan-East Sea regions, and improving accessibility to the Daegu Integrated New Airport from the southwestern part of Gyeongbuk Province.
Gyeongbuk Province evaluated this achievement as the result of steady advocacy for the project’s necessity to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Economy and Finance through cooperation with local political circles to secure selection as a preliminary feasibility study project.
Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, said, “The Seongju~Daegu Expressway is an essential project for balanced national development and establishing a transportation network linked to the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Integrated New Airport. We will thoroughly prepare to ensure economic feasibility during the preliminary feasibility study process and work closely with local lawmakers to ensure its approval.”
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