Yoon says metro area high-speed rail to begin rolling this year

President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged Thursday to "open the era of the GTX in earnest starting this year," referring to the Great Train Express (GTX) high-speed railway system meant to boost connectivity between Seoul and its outskirts.

Reporters receive a briefing from officials at the Great Train Express-A (GTX-A) high-speed railway construction site near Seoul Station in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Thursday, as the government revealed its three major innovations strategies in the transportation sector. On the same day, President Yoon Suk Yeol took part in a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the GTX-C line in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi. [YONHAP]

President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged Thursday to "open the era of the GTX in earnest starting this year," referring to the Great Train Express (GTX) high-speed railway system meant to boost connectivity between Seoul and its outskirts.

"Misguided real estate regulation policies led to soaring housing prices, effectively blocking urban housing supply and forcing people to move to the outskirts to find a place to live," Yoon said at the sixth People's Livelihood debate held in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi. "As a result, many people have had a difficult time without proper transportation infrastructure."

The government on this day expanded on its plans to enable commuting to and from work in the metropolitan area within 30 minutes through the GTX system and make possible one-hour travel to the capital by introducing the x-TX metropolitan express railway in areas outside of greater Seoul.

Yoon further pledged 11 trillion won ($8.2 billion) to speed along delayed railway projects, install new bus lanes on expressways and dispatch additional double-decker electric buses to improve transportation in and out of Seoul.

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the Great Train Express-C (GTX-C) line at Uijeongbu City Hall in Gyeonggi, attended by some 500 people after presiding over the sixth public livelihood debate. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

"The quality of our commute is the quality of our lives," Yoon said during the government-civilian town hall meeting at the Uijeongbu City Hall, attended by some 100 officials, experts and regular commuters.

Yoon noted he had promised an era of a 30-minute commute during his presidential campaign after experiencing riding on the Gimpo Goldline, a subway line connecting Gyeonggi's Gimpo to the Seoul metro system, notorious for hellish congestion levels during rush hour.

He stressed that the government will speed up the extension of GTX lines A, B, and C and include the new lines D, E, and F in the national rail network plan to enable their construction.

"Once lines A to F are completed, it will be possible to travel from the greater metropolitan area to downtown Seoul in 30 minutes," Yoon said.

Yoon further promised to expand such railway services nationwide by launching the so-called x-TX project, which will offer high-speed trains with a maximum speed of 180 kilometers per hour in four metropolitan blocs: Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang; Daegu and North Gyeongsang; Daejeon, Sejong and the Chungcheong provinces; and Gwangju and South Jeolla.

This will enable turning "local metropolitan areas into 'megacities,'" Yoon said.

President Yoon Suk Yeol presides over the sixth public livelihood debate, a government-civilian town hall discussing transportation issues with some 100 officials, regular commuters and experts at Uijeongbu City Hall in Gyeonggi, Thursday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Yoon later attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the GTX-C line, connecting Deokjeong Station in Yangju, Gyeonggi, to Gyeonggi's Suwon Station and entering service in 2028.

"The GTX C route will open a dream metropolitan transportation network that will allow you to travel from the northern part of the metropolitan area to downtown Seoul in less than 30 minutes and the southern part in an hour," Yoon said. "We will go forward with speed to provide more convenient transportation to the people."

This ceremony, held at a gymnasium at the Uijeongbu City Hall, was attended by around 500 people, including residents and construction officials from the areas where GTX-C will pass. The 86.46-kilometer line passes through Seoul's Cheongnyangni Station and Samseong Station in Seoul.

The train's maximum speed will run 180 kilometers per hour, about three times faster than a regular subway.

The GTX-A line, set to open in March, connects southern Seoul's Suseo Station with Dongtan Station in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi. The section connecting Gyeonggi's Paju Unjeong new town with Seoul Station is also expected to be completed this year.

The GTX-B line, connecting Incheon to Gyeonggi's Namyangju, will begin construction in March and enter service in 2030.

The government also announced plans to extend Line A to Pyeongtaek, Line B to Gangwon's Chuncheon and Line C to Gyeonggi's Dongducheon to the north and Cheonan and Asan in South Chungcheong to the south.

Line D will connect Incheon to Wonju in Gangwon, line E Incheon to Guri in Gyeonggi, and line F will form a wide circular route around the metropolitan area.

Later Thursday, Yoon visited the Uijeongbu Jaeil Sijang to encourage merchants suffering from recent economic difficulties and the cold weather.

Yoon ordered Minister of SMEs and Startups Oh Young-ju to consider ways to revitalize the traditional market, including tour programs where merchants can visit and learn from other markets worldwide.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, meets with merchants at the Uijeongbu Jaeil Sijang in Gyeonggi on Thursday. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]