Governor Lee Jae-myung's Last Approval: Free Passage on the Ilsan Bridge from Noon October 27

[경향신문]

Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung (second from right) gives a briefing on plans for a disposition for public interest for free passage on the Ilsan Bridge in front of the Ilsan Bridge toll booths in Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do on September 3. Yonhap News

From noon October 27, cars will be able to travel on the Ilsan Bridge free of charge.

On October 25, Gyeonggi-do announced that the provincial government was going to notify the Ilsan Bridge Co., which manages the bridge, of a disposition for public interest, cancelling the designation of the private investment project and the designation of the contractor for the project on October 26. The Gyeonggi provincial government explained that the decision on the disposition for public interest in connection to Ilsan Bridge was the last thing that former Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung approved of before stepping down this day.

A disposition for public interest refers to actions taken by the local government to cancel a private business’s right to manage and operate a project in exchange for adequate compensation for the public’s best interest, such as an efficient management of infrastructure, according to Article 47 of the Act on Public-Private Partnerships in Infrastructure.

Gyeonggi-do will inform the Ilsan Bridge Co. that the disposition will go into effect at noon October 27. When the disposition goes into effect, Ilsan Bridge Co. will not be able to collect tolls. So drivers will be able to cross the Ilsan Bridge without paying tolls from noon October 27. An official from the Gyeonggi provincial government said, “The disposition for public interest concerning Ilsan Bridge was the last item that Governor Lee Jae-myung approved before he resigned, and after the decision is notified on October 26, free passage will begin on October 27.”

However, if Ilsan Bridge Co. refuses to accept the disposition and files an administrative lawsuit along with an injunction, free passage will have to wait until a court ruling. Earlier, Kim Yong-jin, CEO of the National Pension Service, a major shareholder of Ilsan Bridge Co., spoke in a parliamentary inspection before the Health and Welfare Committee on October 13 and said, “We don’t think it is good to resort to a disposition for public interest.” He suggested the possibility of protesting the disposition saying, “The National Pension Service hopes we can move according to the private investment contract and abide by the contract.”

Ilsan Bridge stretches 1.84 km over the Han River connecting Beopgot-dong, Goyang-si and Geolpo-dong, Gimpo-si. It is the last bridge on the Han River, before the river meets the sea. A total of 178.4 billion won went into constructing the bridge including 148 billion won of private capital. The bridge was open to the public in May 2008. Currently, the bridge charges a toll of 1,200 won for passenger vehicles, which calculates to 652 won per kilometer. This is nearly 3-5 times higher than the tolls for other major private roads, such as the Capital Region First Ring Expressway (109 won) and the Incheon International Airport Expressway (189 won), and this has been the cause of opposition and complaints from nearby residents and local governments.