Gimpo's Taeri IC traffic overhaul gains momentum after clearing feasibility hurdle

A long-awaited effort to overhaul traffic conditions around the Taeri interchange on National Route 48 — one of the most persistent bottlenecks in southeastern Gimpo — has cleared a critical hurdle, paving the way for the project to move forward.

Gimpo City announced Thursday that the "National Route 48 Gimpo Gochon Punggok–Punggok Expansion (Taeri IC Improvement) Project" passed the batch preliminary feasibility review conducted as part of the sixth national and local road construction plan.

According to the city, the Ministry of Planning and Budget convened the seventh Fiscal Investment Evaluation Committee on Wednesday and confirmed 54 of 142 projects under the sixth batch preliminary feasibility review as viable, clearing them for inclusion in the construction plan.

The Taeri IC improvement project, which Gimpo City has been pursuing, was among those approved.

The project covers a 2.5-kilometer stretch of National Route 48 near Punggok-ri in Gochon-eup, with a total budget of about 53 billion won ($38.3 million).

Taeri IC is a major traffic node in Gimpo where National Route 48 meets surrounding roads.

The interchange has long suffered from chronic congestion during rush hours, hampered by a tangle of at-grade signalized intersections and complex vehicle merging and diverging sections, compounded by inadequate directional road connections.

Vehicles converging on the interchange simultaneously have caused frequent conflicts, dragging down traffic flow on the main route — a structural problem that officials have flagged for years.

Traffic volumes are expected to grow further. Nearby development projects — including the Pungmu transit-oriented area, the Yuhyeon and Yangdo districts, Han River Cinepolis, and Geomdan new town — along with planned expansions of the regional transport network, are expected to place even greater strain on the Taeri IC area.

The city has repeatedly urged relevant agencies that addressing the problem requires structural improvements to the interchange itself, not merely traffic management measures, in order to preserve National Route 48's function as an arterial road.

While coordinating with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Seoul Regional Office of Land Management, the city also made a focused case during the feasibility review process, presenting data on traffic congestion at Taeri IC, the structural deficiencies of the road layout, and projections for future traffic demand.

Clearing the preliminary feasibility review allows the Taeri IC improvement project to pass through a key gateway toward inclusion in the sixth national and local road construction plan.

Once the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport publishes the construction plan and subsequent administrative procedures follow, the project is expected to advance in stages.

Upon completion, the project is expected to fix the interchange's incomplete road connections and improve the flow of vehicles between the National Route 48 mainline and surrounding roads.

It is also expected to reduce intersection bottlenecks and the risk of vehicle conflicts, while helping restore National Route 48's original function as a primary arterial corridor.

"Passing this batch preliminary feasibility review is an important starting point for resolving the longstanding traffic problems around Taeri IC," Gimpo Mayor Lee Gi-hyeong said. "We will do our utmost to work closely with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Seoul Regional Office of Land Management, and other relevant agencies to ensure the project is reflected in the sixth national and local road construction plan and that all follow-up procedures proceed without a hitch."