Agreement and Selection of Optimal Route on the 10th... Proposal to Reflect in the '5th National Railroad Network Construction Plan'
On the 10th, the heads of four local governments in the Seoul metropolitan area?Suwon, Yongin, Seongnam, and Hwaseong?will gather in one place to decide the optimal route for extending Seoul Subway Line 3 to the southern part of Gyeonggi Province.
According to these local governments on the 8th, Lee Jae-jun, Mayor of Suwon; Lee Sang-il, Mayor of Yongin; Shin Sang-jin, Mayor of Seongnam; and Jeong Myeong-geun, Mayor of Hwaseong, are scheduled to meet at the Suwon Convention Center on the 10th afternoon.
Last February, Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon and the mayors of four cities took a commemorative photo at the win-win cooperation agreement ceremony for the joint promotion of the extension of Subway Line 3. [Photo by Yongin City]
At this meeting, they plan to discuss and decide on a route plan that can enhance the project's economic feasibility and validity based on the results of the "Line 3 Extension and Southern Gyeonggi Metropolitan Railroad Basic Plan and Feasibility Study Service."
The local government heads also intend to adopt a joint petition requesting that this plan be reflected in the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s "5th National Railroad Network Construction Plan" as a metropolitan railroad project to ensure smooth project implementation. The "National Railroad Network Construction Plan" is the highest-level statutory plan in the field of railroad construction, announced under the "Railroad Construction and Railroad Facility Maintenance Act."
The extension of Line 3 was previously pursued during the 7th local government term in 2019. At that time, Suwon, Yongin, and Seongnam conducted a preliminary feasibility study and promoted the project, but it was shelved due to unresolved issues securing a site to replace the Suseo train depot.
The project gained momentum again in the 8th local government term. In December 2022, Hwaseong City joined the existing three local governments, and they agreed to jointly work on extending Line 3 to southern Gyeonggi, thereby officially advancing the project. The mayors agreed to extend Line 3 to Seongnam Pangyo, Yongin Sinbong and Seongbok, Suwon Gwanggyo, and Hwaseong.
In February of last year, the four local government heads and Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon signed a win-win business agreement for joint project promotion, and in August of the same year, they commissioned a basic plan and feasibility study service for this purpose.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will receive proposals for new metropolitan railroad projects for the 5th National Railroad Network Construction Plan within this month and hold an explanatory meeting for local government proposals in June. The ministry is expected to announce new projects and additional review projects in July next year, following a public hearing as early as April.
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