Policy Forum for Sustainable Management of Namsan at City Council
Criticism of Cable Car Monopoly Operation... "No Public Contribution"
Chairperson Choi Hojeong: "The Cable Car Monopoly System Must Be Corrected"
The Seoul Metropolitan Council will hold a policy forum for sustainable management of Namsan. The forum will discuss the social and economic effects of the Namsan Gondola project promoted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and also consider measures to preserve the surrounding ecosystem.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on the 10th, the Seoul Metropolitan Council will hold a forum in the afternoon where experts in urban planning and urban ecology will gather to discuss topics such as "The Need to Restore the Public Nature of Namsan."
The forum, which begins with an opening address by Kim Gil-young, Chair of the Urban Planning and Balance Committee of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, will be attended by Gwak Jeong-in, Director of the Urban Ecology Research Center at the University of Seoul, Han Bong-ho, Professor at the University of Seoul, and Park Jeong-rok, Executive Vice President of the Seoul Tourism Association, among others.
At this meeting, measures to normalize the Namsan Gondola project will be discussed. Previously, the Seoul Metropolitan Government held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Namsan Gondola project in September last year and announced that it would officially operate in the first half of 2026. The gondola is planned to operate on an 832-meter section between Yejang Park (lower station), located 200 meters from Myeongdong Station, and the summit of Namsan (upper station). The foundational work for the lower station has already begun. However, the project has been stalled as the court accepted a suspension request filed by Korea Cable Industry, the operator of the Namsan cable car, asking the Seoul Metropolitan Government to halt construction.
The Metropolitan Council will present opinions aimed at restoring the public nature of Namsan by preventing the permanent monopoly of the cable car. It will also point out that although the operator generates hundreds of billions of won in annual revenue, there is no public contribution beyond the national land usage fee.
Opinions on the Namsan Gondola project will also be presented. Specific measures to increase population inflow from Myeongdong Station to Yejang Park and the Namsan summit via the gondola will be discussed, such as diversifying the location conditions of the upper and lower stations and strengthening connectivity with nearby areas. Additionally, the forum will address the restoration of the Namsan ecosystem and the establishment of mid- to long-term management plans. It is known that the current status and changes of the Namsan ecosystem will be reviewed and related opinions will be conveyed to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
Choi Ho-jeong, Chairperson of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, is expected to mention in his congratulatory speech, "Due to the legal dispute with the Namsan Cable Car company, which has been embroiled in a 63-year monopoly controversy, construction of the Namsan Gondola has been halted for more than three months," adding, "If the law is blocking efforts to correct the unreasonable monopoly system and restore the public and public interest nature of Namsan, we must consider ways to fix the problems inherent in the law."
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