Uibanghak Light Rail, Basic Plan Approved, Turnkey Method Confirmed, and Central Investment Review Passed
Seoul City to Execute Annual Budget from Next Year, Bidding Announcement Scheduled for August
Dobong-gu (Mayor Oh Eon-seok) announced that the Ui-Banghak Light Rail Transit (LRT) has passed the central investment review by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Central Investment Review Committee.
Projects requiring a total budget of over 30 billion KRW must undergo a central investment review process according to the Local Finance Act before reflecting the annual budget.
Accordingly, Seoul City plans to execute the annual budget starting next year, and will announce a turnkey bid in August to select a major construction company. Following the procedures, the Ui-Banghak LRT is expected to begin construction in 2025 and be completed in 2031.
The Ui-Banghak LRT had been stalled since the preliminary feasibility study was completed in 2011. However, since the launch of the 8th local government administration, progress has accelerated with a demand forecast reassessment, passing the strategic environmental impact assessment last year, negotiating the total project cost this year, and approving the basic plan.
Furthermore, in March this year, the Ui-Banghak LRT was confirmed to proceed via the turnkey method, giving momentum to the project. The turnkey method is a bidding process that combines design and construction, which can shorten the project duration by about nine months.
Oh Eon-seok, Mayor of Dobong-gu, said, “The Ui-Banghak LRT is a long-awaited project for residents and an important transportation infrastructure in the region. We will work closely with related organizations such as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Seoul City to ensure construction starts in 2025 and completion in 2031.”
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