"If the Road Opens, the Game Changes": Ulsan, North Gyeongsang, and Gyeongsan Unite Through Expressway

Joint Declaration to Be Adopted on the 16th and Delivered to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport
Travel Time Between Eonyang-eup, Ulju and Jinryang-eup, Gyeongsan to Be Reduced from 46 Minutes to 30 Minutes

Ulsan City, North Gyeongsang Province, and Gyeongsan City have reached a consensus on the necessity of constructing the Ulsan-Gyeongsan Expressway to strengthen national competitiveness, and will adopt a joint declaration.

On December 16, at 2:00 p.m., Ulsan City will hold the 'Ulsan-Gyeongsan Expressway Construction Joint Declaration Signing Ceremony' in the main conference room of Gyeongsan City Hall.

The event will be attended by Ulsan Mayor Kim Doo-gyeom, North Gyeongsang Province Governor Lee Cheol-woo, Gyeongsan Mayor Cho Hyun-il, National Assembly member Cho Ji-yeon, Gyeongsan City Council Chairperson An Moon-gil, and approximately 150 local residents.

On this day, the three local governments will adopt the joint declaration and, at 10:00 a.m. the following day, December 17, deliver it to Minister Kim Yoon-duk of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, officially requesting that the project be included in the '3rd Expressway Construction Plan (2026-2030)'.

The joint declaration emphasizes that the expressway is a key foundational facility uniting the Ulsan area and the Daegu-North Gyeongsang area into a single metropolitan economic zone. It also includes commitments to jointly respond to the inclusion of the project in the '3rd Expressway Construction Plan (2026-2030)', strengthen industrial and logistics competitiveness, enhance transportation convenience for residents, and build a sustainable cooperation system and stronger policy response in the future.

The 'Ulsan-Gyeongsan Expressway' is planned to span a total length of 50 kilometers with four lanes, connecting Eonyang-eup in Ulju-gun, Ulsan, to Jinryang-eup in Gyeongsan City.

Once the expressway is constructed, the time required for industrial freight transport will be significantly reduced, which is expected to strengthen the competitiveness of companies in Ulsan and North Gyeongsang, improve the corporate investment environment, and revitalize the local economy.

In particular, with the opening of the integrated Daegu-North Gyeongsang International Airport, accessibility to the airport for Ulsan residents is expected to greatly improve. The reduction in travel time across the tourism belt connecting Ulsan and North Gyeongsang is also anticipated, positioning the expressway as a key transportation axis linking the Ulsan, Daegu, and North Gyeongsang metropolitan areas.

Mayor Kim Doo-gyeom stated, "The Ulsan-Gyeongsan Expressway is an important metropolitan road network that will unite the Ulsan and Daegu-North Gyeongsang regions into a single economic zone. If linked with the 'Ulsan Expressway Urban Underground Project' currently being promoted by Ulsan City, the effects on urban competitiveness and logistics system improvement will be maximized. I urge the government to actively consider and include this project as part of the national balanced development strategy."