Gwangmyeong city will monitor the measures' effectiveness over weekend
By Park Si-soo
IKEA Korea said it will expand the outdoor parking lot of its outlet in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, as part of measures to ease traffic congestion that put the store at risk of a business suspension.
It will raise its parking capacity to cater for 3,500 vehicles, up from current capacity of 2,000.
The Swedish furniture retailer will also significantly reduce free parking time ㅡ from five hours to three ㅡ and let more employees work for time-efficient parking and departure.
"That's all we can do for now," an IKEA spokeswoman told The Korea Times by phone. "We finalized the solution after IKEA executives had a meeting with Gwangmyeong officials Tuesday."
She said the suggested measures will help ease severe traffic congestion on roads surrounding IKEA's first mall in Korea.
Gwangmyeong will monitor the measures' effectiveness over weekend and then decide whether to withdraw its threat of a business suspension, officials said.
The first IKEA mall opened on Dec. 18. It has since been pressed to come up with a "dramatic solution" for the problem by Gwangmyeong. The city warned the outlet would be shut from Jan. 15 unless it provides a breakthrough by Wednesday.
But few seem to believe that the measures will significantly improve traffic conditions. Although the outlet's parking lot will be expanded, its capacity still falls short of accommodating daily visiting cars on average. Gwangmyeong said an estimated 8,500 cars daily use the parking lot on average.
Critics say it's also uncertain how much the reduction of free parking time will help improve road conditions.
"Perhaps it will have a limited impact," a Gwangmyeong resident said. "IKEA will need to work closely with Gwangmyeong to come up with a more fundamental solution."
Many citizens say Gwangmyeong is not free from the criticism. They lashed out at the city for giving approval for business to IKEA without a thorough study of possible traffic congestion.
The IKEA spokeswoman refused to comment on the issue.
Meanwhile, Gwangmyeong is pressing the central government to revise a law governing the retail business to have IKEA registered as a large-scale discount mall. The outlet is now registered as a mall specializing in furniture.
If it is re-categorized as a discount mall, IKEA will have to shut twice a month on weekends, a decision taken two years ago to ensure co-prosperity of big and small retailers.
Proponents of the move say the IKEA outlet threatens small and medium-sized domestic furniture makers, forcing them to slash prices to survive.
They said that although major furniture companies such as Hanssem, Hyundai Livart and Ace Bed seemed to be little affected, they would soon feel the pressure.
IKEA will open four more outlets around Seoul by 2020.
By Park Si-soo
IKEA Korea said it will expand the outdoor parking lot of its outlet in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, as part of measures to ease traffic congestion that put the store at risk of a business suspension.
It will raise its parking capacity to cater for 3,500 vehicles, up from current capacity of 2,000.
The Swedish furniture retailer will also significantly reduce free parking time ㅡ from five hours to three ㅡ and let more employees work for time-efficient parking and departure.
"That's all we can do for now," an IKEA spokeswoman told The Korea Times by phone. "We finalized the solution after IKEA executives had a meeting with Gwangmyeong officials Tuesday."
She said the suggested measures will help ease severe traffic congestion on roads surrounding IKEA's first mall in Korea.
Gwangmyeong will monitor the measures' effectiveness over weekend and then decide whether to withdraw its threat of a business suspension, officials said.
The first IKEA mall opened on Dec. 18. It has since been pressed to come up with a "dramatic solution" for the problem by Gwangmyeong. The city warned the outlet would be shut from Jan. 15 unless it provides a breakthrough by Wednesday.
But few seem to believe that the measures will significantly improve traffic conditions. Although the outlet's parking lot will be expanded, its capacity still falls short of accommodating daily visiting cars on average. Gwangmyeong said an estimated 8,500 cars daily use the parking lot on average.
Critics say it's also uncertain how much the reduction of free parking time will help improve road conditions.
"Perhaps it will have a limited impact," a Gwangmyeong resident said. "IKEA will need to work closely with Gwangmyeong to come up with a more fundamental solution."
Many citizens say Gwangmyeong is not free from the criticism. They lashed out at the city for giving approval for business to IKEA without a thorough study of possible traffic congestion.
The IKEA spokeswoman refused to comment on the issue.
Meanwhile, Gwangmyeong is pressing the central government to revise a law governing the retail business to have IKEA registered as a large-scale discount mall. The outlet is now registered as a mall specializing in furniture.
If it is re-categorized as a discount mall, IKEA will have to shut twice a month on weekends, a decision taken two years ago to ensure co-prosperity of big and small retailers.
Proponents of the move say the IKEA outlet threatens small and medium-sized domestic furniture makers, forcing them to slash prices to survive.
They said that although major furniture companies such as Hanssem, Hyundai Livart and Ace Bed seemed to be little affected, they would soon feel the pressure.
IKEA will open four more outlets around Seoul by 2020.
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