Seoul to Have Underground Roads
By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
Seoul is expected to construct roads underground to tackle the city's notorious traffic congestion.
The plan was first proposed last February as part of the development project for underground space.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has now earmarked 900 million won of the city's budget for a two-year research project into the construction of underground roads for next year.
``Traffic problems in the city are one of the main obstructions for its development,'' a city official said. ``To enhance the competitiveness of the city and tackle the traffic problems, we plan to construct underground roads.''
The average traffic speed in the city has decreased every year. It was 16.4 kilometers per hour in 1996 but decreased to 14 kilometers per hour in 2005.
Traffic congestion costs have also increased by 5 percent every year _ 3.6 trillion won in 1996, 5,3 trillion won in 2002 and 6 trillion won in 2005.
The mega project will be similar to the so-called ``Big Dig'' project in Boston, United States, which constructed a 5.6 kilometer tunnel under the city, and the A86 in Paris, which includes an underground tunnel ring under the city.
The underground road is considered cost-efficient as it is expected to reduce the budget in the purchase of private landed property for the construction of new roads, the official said.
But detailed plans will be confirmed depending on the research work results. Based on constructive results, the city government will designate target areas, construction methods and policies for toll roads, he added.
It will also propose a bill to the Ministry of Construction and Transportation for the revision of related law as the nation has insufficient laws governing underground roads.