Healing Road Connecting City, Nature, and People! Reconnecting the Disconnected Pohang Forest Trails

Connecting Disconnected Forest Trails in Yeonhwajae Area This July... Plans to Link Yongheung-dong and Uhyun-dong Forest Paths

Construction Bidding Scheduled for Second Half of This Year to Connect Soti-jae Section Linking Uhyun-dong and Changpo-do

Pohang City is accelerating the ‘Urban Area Disconnected Forest Trail Connection Project’ to ecologically reconnect forest trails severed by road construction.

Yeonhwajae, Pedestrian Bridge Connecting Disconnected Urban Forest Paths.

According to the city, in May last year, a pedestrian bridge measuring 73m in length and 2.8m in width was installed to connect the disconnected forest trail at the entrance gateway coming from Pohang IC. Since January this year, construction has begun on a 60m long and 2.5m wide disconnected forest trail connection project in the Yeonhwajae area of Yongheung-dong, with completion targeted for July.

The Pohang IC disconnected forest trail pedestrian bridge holds significant meaning as it reconnected a forest trail that had been severed for about 20 years due to road construction near the highway tollgate in 2004.

With this trail connection, the forest trails in Nam-gu’s Yeonil-eup Yugang-ri and Hyogok-dong areas are now linked with those in Buk-gu’s Yanghak-dong and Yongheung-dong, receiving positive feedback from many citizens.

Since the opening of the Pohang IC disconnected forest trail pedestrian bridge, over 2,000 citizens have been using this path monthly, and it is expected that the number of users will steadily increase through continuous promotion and maintenance of forest trail convenience facilities.

The city views the urban area disconnected forest trail connection as not only providing convenience to visitors but also serving as an ecological corridor through mountain ridge restoration.

The Pohang IC entrance pedestrian bridge features an arch-shaped design symbolizing the rising sun, with nighttime landscape lighting expressing Pohang’s youthfulness and bright future. Meanwhile, the currently underway Yeonhwajae pedestrian bridge in Yongheung-dong is designed to resemble blue waves, embodying the city’s dynamic spirit and aspirations to evolve as a marine cultural tourism city.

Once the Yeonhwajae section is connected, the disconnected forest trails between Yongheung-dong and Uhyun-dong in Buk-gu will be linked, marking the second forest trail connection following the Pohang IC pedestrian bridge, and is expected to meet diverse hiking demands of citizens.

Additionally, the Soti-jae section connection project, which will link Uhyun-dong and Changpo-dong, is currently undergoing detailed design work, with construction planned to be commissioned in the second half of this year.

Upon completion of the planned disconnected forest trail connection projects, approximately 20 km of urban forest trails will be connected from Yugang-ri in Yeonil-eup, Nam-gu to the Buk-gu area. Furthermore, once the ‘Pohang Railway Forest Symbiotic Forest Trail Pedestrian Bridge Connection Project’ is completed this year, the trail will cross the Hyeongsan River and extend to forest trails in Nam-gu.

Lee Chang-jun, Director of the Greenery Division, stated, “Urban forest trails are easily accessible and generally have gentle slopes, making them easy to use for people of all ages and genders. We will continue to make great efforts in developing various courses and installing and managing facilities to ensure the safety of users so that citizens can enjoy healthy hiking.”