Final Approval of Busan Seunghak Tunnel Private Investment Project... Private Investment Review Passed, Construction to Start Next Year

20-Minute Reduction from Bukhang to Seobusan to Gadeok New Airport

Boost for 2030 Busan World Expo 'Attraction'

Toll Fee Set at 1,500 Won to Reduce Citizen Burden

The Busan Seunghak Tunnel project, constructed through private investment, is set to be launched in earnest and is expected to break ground next year.

Busan City (Mayor Park Hyung-jun) announced that the 'Seunghak Tunnel Private Investment Project,' which connects Eomgung-dong in Sasang-gu and Chungjang-daero in Jung-gu, passed the first review of the Ministry of Economy and Finance's Private Investment Project Deliberation Committee this year on the 29th.

With the Seunghak Tunnel private investment project passing the Ministry of Economy and Finance's review, the designation of the project implementer and the implementation agreement plan will be reported to the city council in April, and the designation of the project implementer and the signing of the implementation agreement are expected to take place in May. At the same time, detailed design work will commence, accelerating the full-scale project promotion.

Location map of Seunghak Tunnel.

The Seunghak Tunnel private investment project, based on the BTO (Build-Transfer-Operate) method, spans a total length of 7.69 km with four lanes (two lanes each way). The construction period is five years, and the operation period is 30 years.

The toll fee has been set at 1,500 KRW (based on the fixed price as of March 2016), which is 95 KRW lower than the third-party proposal of 1,595 KRW for passenger cars, to reduce the burden on citizens.

The BTO method refers to a system where a private business entity directly constructs the facility, transfers ownership to the government or others, and then operates the facility for a certain period to generate revenue.

Once the Seunghak Tunnel opens, the travel time from Bukhang to Gadeokdo New Airport (during peak hours) will be reduced from the current one hour to 40 minutes, shortening by about 20 minutes and greatly improving accessibility to Gadeokdo New Airport.

Busan City plans to start construction of the Seunghak Tunnel in 2024 and ensure its opening by 2029 to attract and successfully host the 2030 Busan World Expo.

Mayor Park Hyung-jun emphasized, "The Seunghak Tunnel construction project will not only lead to balanced east-west development between the old downtown and the western Busan area but also play a significant role in alleviating induced traffic caused by the construction of Gadeokdo New Airport, the redevelopment of Bukhang, and the hosting of the 2030 Busan World Expo."

Mayor Park added, "With the opening of Gadeokdo New Airport in 2029 and the opening of the Seunghak Tunnel as an access road network, we will devote our efforts to attracting and successfully hosting the 2030 Busan World Expo."