Gangnam-gu Submits Residents' Opposition to Siheung~Songpa Expressway Passing Through Segok-dong

Submission to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Summarizing Local Residents' Opposition to Highway Construction and Requests Related to Regional Issues

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Gangnam-gu (District Mayor Jo Seong-myeong) submitted the results of collecting residents' opinions on the draft strategic environmental impact assessment report for the Siheung~Songpa Highway passing through Segok-dong to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 13th.

The Siheung~Songpa Highway is an approximately 30km road connecting Mokgam-dong in Siheung-si, Gyeonggi-do and Gami-dong in Hanam-si in an east-west direction via Segok-dong in Gangnam-gu, and it is planned to be connected to the Seoul~Yangpyeong Highway in the future.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport conducted a public inspection and briefing session on the draft strategic environmental impact assessment report for the Siheung~Songpa Highway private investment project through related local governments including Gangnam-gu from December 2, 2022, to January 5, 2023, and accepted opinions until January 12.

Accordingly, about 100 people including local residents and district council members attended two residents' briefings held at the Segok Cultural Center, expressing opposition to the highway construction. In addition, about 1,000 local residents opposing the highway construction submitted a petition and opinion letter requesting a public hearing.

The reason for local residents' opposition is that the highway is planned to pass underground near residential areas and elementary schools. This could cause ▲building safety issues due to vibrations during construction ▲environmental problems such as destruction of the ecosystem of nearby ecological streams like Tancheon, noise, exhaust fumes, light pollution, and ventilation shaft installation ▲traffic congestion issues due to IC installation.

Residents of Segok-dong said, “The subway line (Wirye-Gwacheon Line), which has been a long-standing wish of local residents, has not even started construction despite 10 years since residents moved in,” and “Instead of building a highway passing through a large residential area, subway construction to alleviate traffic inconvenience should come first,” they unanimously stated.

Segok-dong in Gangnam-gu was developed into a mini new town with a population of about 50,000 through the public housing development project over 10 years ago, but since no metropolitan transportation improvement plan has been established, residents have continuously demanded expansion of public transportation such as subways and buses.

Moreover, while many high-rise buildings such as apartments and officetels were built through the public housing development project, the existing residential complexes and surrounding areas are designated as exclusive residential zones and greenbelt areas, causing development imbalance compared to surrounding regions. As a result, residents have continuously requested zoning upgrades and greenbelt releases.

Accordingly, the district compiled residents' opposition to highway construction along with requests regarding these regional issues and submitted them to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 13th.

Jo Seong-myeong, Mayor of Gangnam-gu, said, “There should be no cases where residents are exposed to danger or suffer inconveniences such as noise, exhaust fumes, and traffic congestion due to highway construction,” and “We have submitted these residents' opinions to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.” He added, “We will do our best to ensure that the Wirye-Gwacheon Line railway, which is currently undergoing a private investment feasibility study, can be constructed as soon as possible.”