Incheon City Council Passes Resolution Urging Incheon City's Proposal for 'Seoul Line 5 Extension Route'

A resolution urging the government to discard the adjustment plan for the extended section of Seoul Subway Line 5 to Gimpo and Geomdan, and to finalize the route reflecting the original Incheon City proposal including four stations with Wondang Station and Bullo Station, has passed the Incheon City Council plenary session.

According to the City Council on the 11th, the 'Resolution Urging the Finalization of the Seoul Subway Line 5 Extension Route (Incheon City Proposal),' which was primarily proposed by Assemblyman Kim Myung-joo (Minju Party, Seo-gu 6) and agreed upon by all 40 members, was approved at the 5th plenary session of the 293rd extraordinary meeting held on the 8th.

Through the resolution, the City Council pointed out that "the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's Metropolitan Area Wide-area Transportation Committee (DAEGANGWI) presented a unilateral adjustment plan that failed to sufficiently reflect the transportation demand for Geomdan in Seo-gu, Incheon, a new metropolitan city area without a metropolitan railway, causing a huge setback to the core railway network construction project for the comprehensive development of northern Incheon."

It further stated, "We strongly condemn DAEGANGWI's adjustment plan for the Line 5 extension route, which only reflects Gimpo City's position while ignoring the agreement procedures among local governments," and urged that "the sustainable Incheon City proposal for future generations be promptly finalized."

Seoul Subway Line 5 Gimpo·Geomdan Extension Route Adjustment Plan

DAEGANGWI issued an adjustment plan on January 19th after prolonged conflicts between Incheon City and Gimpo City over the Line 5 extension route (Seoul Banghwa Station?Incheon Geomdan New Town?Gimpo Hangang New Town).

The adjustment plan reflected only two stations instead of the four stations requested by Incheon City in Seo-gu, but ensured that Line 5 would pass through Aradong, the central area of Geomdan with high passenger demand.

Additionally, the station location near the Incheon-Gimpo boundary was moved approximately 1.5 km from Bullo-dong in Incheon to Gamjeong-dong in Gimpo. As a result, the number of stations in Seo-gu reflected Gimpo City's opinion, while the route passing through the center of Geomdan New Town reflected Incheon City's opinion.

However, Incheon City and some residents of Geomdan have expressed their refusal to accept the adjustment plan that excludes two stations in the old downtown area of Seo-gu (Wondang Station and Bullo Station).