All Connecting Roads for Hwaseong Dongtan 1 and 2 New Towns to Open This Month

Hwaseong-si "4 Roads Sequentially Open on 23rd and 30th"
New Towns Connected into a Single Living Area by Highway Link Completion

The construction of the upper connecting roads, promoted as a follow-up project after the undergrounding of the Hwaseong Dongtan section of the Gyeongbu Expressway, will be completed this month and opened sequentially. As a result, Dongtan 1 and 2 New Towns, which had been separated by the expressway, will be reborn as a single living zone.

Opening schedule of the upper connecting road in the Dongtan section of Gyeongbu Expressway. Provided by Hwaseong City

According to Hwaseong City and Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) on the 19th, roads 2 and 5 among the upper connecting roads in the underground section of the Gyeongbu Expressway will complete construction and open on the 23rd. Subsequently, roads 3 and 4 are also scheduled to open on the 30th.

The four roads opening this time are auxiliary arterial roads connecting Dongtan 1 and 2 New Towns, along with roads 1 and 6, which are main arterial roads opened at the end of August. With the opening of the auxiliary arterial roads, traffic volume that had been concentrated on the main arterial roads will be dispersed, improving accessibility to Dongtan Station and easing congestion during commuting hours.

Earlier, LH had been carrying out a project to create cross roads and parks in the upper space created by the 1.2 km underground section of Dongtan New Town, part of the Gyeongbu Expressway straightening project. With the opening of the auxiliary roads, all six upper cross road projects will be completed.

The city plans, in cooperation with LH, to develop the park created above the expressway into a landmark of the Dongtan area and an eco-friendly community space that promotes interaction and communication between regions. The park area is 87,000 square meters, equivalent to 12 soccer fields.

Jung Myung-geun, mayor of Hwaseong City, said, "The opening of the upper roads of the Gyeongbu Expressway is an important turning point that integrates Dongtan 1 and 2 New Towns into a single living zone beyond simple transportation network improvement," adding, "It will also greatly contribute to revitalizing the local economy and improving residents' living environment."