Return Traffic Congestion Slightly Eases... "Busan to Seoul 4 Hours 50 Minutes"

Expected Resolution Around 1-2 AM on October 1

Traffic congestion on the Chuseok return trip is easing gradually after reaching its peak.

The northbound (left) and southbound lanes near Jamwon IC on the Seoul Gyeongbu Expressway are crowded with vehicles.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Korea Expressway Corporation as of 10 PM on the 30th, the estimated travel times from various regional toll gates to the Seoul toll gate are 4 hours 50 minutes from Busan, 4 hours from Gwangju, 4 hours 10 minutes from Ulsan, 3 hours 30 minutes from Daegu, 2 hours 40 minutes from Gangneung, and 2 hours 28 minutes from Daejeon. Compared to 5 PM earlier, the expected travel times have decreased by about 40 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes.

The travel times from Seoul to Gangneung and Busan are 2 hours 40 minutes and 4 hours 40 minutes, respectively. For Ulsan and Daegu, traveling from Seoul to these cities takes about 1 hour longer than the time it takes to travel to Seoul from these cities.

The Expressway Corporation expects the final outbound traffic congestion to clear between 9 and 10 PM on the same day, and the return traffic congestion to be resolved around 1 to 2 AM on October 1. On the fourth day of the holiday, October 1, it is expected that 4.82 million vehicles will be on the move nationwide. Vehicles traveling from the metropolitan area to local regions and from local regions to the metropolitan area are projected to be 380,000 and 490,000, respectively.

Traffic flow on the outbound trip is expected to be relatively smooth, but congestion on the return trip is anticipated to begin around 10 to 11 AM, peak between 5 and 6 PM, and ease from 11 PM to midnight.