Petition to extend subway Line 3 to Paju tops 10,000 signatures

A long-held wish of Paju residents — extending subway Line 3 to the city — has been formally conveyed to Gyeonggi Province.

A petition calling for the Line 3 extension to Paju, submitted by a resident on the Gyeonggi Province public petition board in August, has drawn more than 10,000 signatures, meeting the threshold that requires a direct response from the Gyeonggi governor.

The petition carries particular weight because it was initiated and driven by ordinary citizens rather than the city government. The more than 10,000 signatures reflect strong public support for the extension and broad consensus on the need to push the project forward.

Paju plans to use the petition as a springboard to strengthen cooperation with Gyeonggi Province so that residents' voices reach both the provincial and central governments more clearly.

Extending Line 3 to Paju is one of the signature campaign pledges of the city's ninth elected administration. The project is considered essential to keeping pace with sustained urban growth in the northwestern greater Seoul area and to improving regional transit access for residents.

Paju's goal goes beyond having the Line 3 extension included in the Fifth National Railway Network Construction Plan — the city aims to see the project through to actual implementation. To that end, it is developing a commercialization strategy and plans to work closely with Gyeonggi Province and relevant agencies.

"This petition means even more because citizens started it themselves and more than 10,000 people joined in," Paju Mayor Son Bae-chan said. "Now that residents' voices have reached Gyeonggi Province, I hope the province will play an active role in ensuring the Line 3 extension to Paju moves forward smoothly."

Son added that the project cannot end with inclusion in the national railway plan. "Paju will thoroughly prepare for the follow-up procedures after inclusion — such as the government's feasibility study — and we will do everything we can to ensure this leads to real, tangible progress on the project," he said.