Gijang County in Busan Visits Ministry of Land to Advocate for KTX-Eum Stop at Gijang Station

Mayor Jung Jongbok Stresses:
"KTX-Eum Stop at Gijang Station Is Key
to Revitalizing Local Tourism and Economy"

On November 10, Gijang County announced that Mayor Jung Jongbok visited the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to strongly emphasize the necessity and justification for attracting a KTX-Eum stop at Gijang Station.

Jung Jongbok, Mayor of Gijang County (right), is visiting the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to urge the attraction of the KTX-Eum Gijang Station.

Previously, on November 5, Mayor Jung visited the Daejeon headquarters of Korail and met with Lee Minseong, Head of Customer Marketing, to request the attraction of the KTX-Eum Gijang Station. Through this visit to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, he once again urged the central government to make an active designation decision.

On the same day, Mayor Jung pointed out that there are 13 industrial complexes, including the Dongnam Medical Science Industrial Complex, as well as key tourism hubs such as the Osiria Tourism Complex and Haedong Yonggungsa Temple, which attract tens of millions of visitors annually, resulting in a surge in demand for rail transportation. He emphasized that a KTX-Eum stop at Gijang Station is essential, as it would dramatically improve accessibility for visitors and play a decisive role in revitalizing local tourism and the economy.

In particular, he presented objective data showing that the number of passengers using the ITX-Maum and Mugunghwa trains at Gijang Station increased by 48.5% as of August this year compared to December last year, thereby sufficiently demonstrating the necessity and justification for attracting the KTX-Eum Gijang Station.

Mayor Jung Jongbok stated, "Having the KTX-Eum stop at Gijang Station is not just a matter of transportation convenience, but an essential condition for Gijang County to emerge as a new growth hub in the southeastern region." He added, "By leveraging its geographical advantage between Busan Bujeon Station and Ulsan Taehwagang Station, we will ensure that the KTX-Eum stops at Gijang Station."

To attract the KTX-Eum stop, Gijang County completed a feasibility study in 2022 and delivered a petition with 141,000 signatures from county residents to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in 2023, demonstrating more active efforts than competing local governments.

From March to December last year, Gijang County carried out a total of 17 countywide participation campaigns to attract the stop, and starting this year, it has been focusing on boosting Gijang Station usage by signing business agreements with local institutions and companies. These agreements offer benefits such as a 20% discount on Skyline Luge & Zipline and a 1,000-won admission to the National Busan Science Museum for ITX-Maum and Mugunghwa ticket holders, as well as various perks at 43 restaurants and cafes through the end of the year.