Seongnam City Asks MOLIT to Extend Subway Line 8 to Pangyo and Withdraw Caps on Bundang Reconstruction Volume

Seongnam City Calls for Inclusion of Key Transportation Projects such as GTX Transfer Center
"Freezing Approvals Only in Bundang Is Unreasonable"...Urges Increase in Reconstruction Supply Volume

Seongnam City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Shin Sangjin) has asked the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to take an active role in resolving the city’s key pending issues, ahead of Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yundeok’s visit on the 25th to Dochon Sageori, the planned site of the (tentatively named) Yatap-Dochon Station.

Exterior view of Seongnam City Hall. Provided by Seongnam City.

This request is built around two main pillars: the expansion of transportation infrastructure and the normalization of the Bundang reconstruction project. The aim is to strengthen Seongnam’s function as a core city in the southern Seoul metropolitan area and to improve the quality of life for its citizens.

On the 25th at 8:00 a.m., Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yundeok is scheduled to visit Dochon Sageori to check the morning commuter traffic conditions, and then move to the Seongnam Senior Industry Innovation Center to hold a meeting with local residents.

In the transportation sector, Seongnam City requested: prompt promotion of the preliminary feasibility study for the extension of Subway Line 8 to Pangyo; a review of exempting the Pangyo-Opo railway project from the preliminary feasibility study; and support for the early implementation of the construction of the transfer center at Seongnam Station on the Metropolitan Express Railway (GTX)-A line.

The city also proposed: securing passage of the preliminary feasibility study for the Wirye-Samdong Line; including the Southern Gyeonggi Metropolitan Railway in, and obtaining approval and public notice under, the Fifth National Railway Network Construction Plan; establishing Dochon-Yatap Station in connection with the Suseo-Gwangju Line; changing the route to run adjacent to Sandeul Village; and relocating the ventilation shaft and work shaft planned in front of Pungsaeng High School.

In addition, the city requested: active cooperation when submitting the results of the preliminary feasibility study for the establishment of Baekhyeon MICE Station; the establishment of Pangyo-dong Station on the Wolgot-Pangyo Line and the preparation of measures to address noise, vibration, and safety; promotion of the linkage between the development of the Ori Station area and the establishment of Ori-Dongcheon Station on the Super Rapid Train (SRT) line; and the inclusion of double-double tracking of the second high-speed line in the Seoul metropolitan area in the Fifth National Railway Network Construction Plan.

In the reconstruction sector, the city strongly urged the withdrawal of restrictions on the number of housing units related to the redevelopment project of the first-phase new town in Bundang.

Recently, the government expanded the upper limit on the designated zones for the first-phase new town redevelopment projects by about 2.7 times, from 26,400 units to 69,600 units, and significantly increased the annual permit volumes for Ilsan, Jungdong, Pyeongchon, and Sanbon. Ilsan was increased from 5,000 to 24,800 units, Jungdong from 4,000 to 22,000 units, and Pyeongchon from 3,000 to 7,200 units. In contrast, Bundang has been set at “no increase in units,” effectively freezing its annual permit volume.

Seongnam City believes that, with the volume in high-demand Bundang restricted, it will be realistically difficult for the government to achieve its housing supply targets, and therefore argues that the volume restrictions should be lifted immediately. The city also stressed that Bundang, which has both strong administrative capacity and a solid foundation of resident participation, can fully absorb sufficient supply, and that this would make a tangible contribution to stabilizing the housing market in the Seoul metropolitan area.

An official from Seongnam City stated, “We hope that the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s on-site visit to Seongnam will serve as an opportunity for long-awaited projects of our citizens to make real progress,” adding, “However, given that this is a period leading up to the local elections, we hope there will be careful consideration and prudent conduct, in light of concerns that it could be perceived as the use of administrative power to influence the election.”