30-Year Detour Despite Guui Station Nearby... Green Light for Gwangmyeong-Side Pedestrian Passage

Inclusion in the Ministry of Land’s Transfer Center Master Plan

Pedestrian Passage to Connect Cheolsan 1-dong by 2030

Walking Distance Reduced from 470m to 170m

Elevators and Bus Transfer Facilities to Be Installed

The inconvenience that Gwangmyeong citizens have endured for more than 30 years—having to take a long detour despite Guui Station being right in front of them—is expected to be resolved.

The front view of the workplace. Provided by Gwangmyeong City

On September 4, Gwangmyeong City, Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Park Seungwon), announced that the "Guui Station Transfer Center" project, which will connect Guui Station and Cheolsan 1-dong, has been included as a new metropolitan area project in the "4th Basic Plan for the Establishment of Transfer Centers and Integrated Transfer Centers (2026-2030)" by the Metropolitan Transport Commission under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The Guui Station Transfer Center project involves the installation of an entrance walking passage and small-scale transfer facilities that will link Guui Station on Metro Line 1 with Cheolsan 1-dong in Gwangmyeong City. The plan is to invest 14.8 billion won in total, with construction scheduled to be completed by 2030.

Guui Station, which opened above Anyang Stream in February 1995, is located adjacent to Cheolsan-dong, Gwangmyeong City. However, the station's only entrance has been on the Seoul Guro side, so citizens of Gwangmyeong have had to cross the Saseong pedestrian bridge or detour along the banks of Anyang Stream to reach the station, even though it is nearby.

In particular, the movement route includes stairs and ramps, which has caused significant inconvenience for the transportation disadvantaged, such as the elderly, people with disabilities, and stroller users.

When the new entrance passage on the Gwangmyeong side opens, the walking distance from Cheolsan-dong to the Guui Station platform will decrease from the current 470 meters to about 170 meters, a reduction of approximately 300 meters. In addition, accessibility is expected to improve for wheelchair and stroller users with the installation of convenience facilities for the transportation disadvantaged, such as elevators.

Transfers between local buses—such as Gwangmyeong 01 and 02—and Guui Station will also become more convenient. Gwangmyeong City anticipates that the project will address transportation demand arising from redevelopment and reconstruction in Cheolsan-dong and Gwangmyeong-dong, and help disperse passenger congestion concentrated at Gwangmyeongsageori Station and Cheolsan Station on Line 7, and Gaebong Station on Line 1.

With the inclusion of the project in the latest Basic Plan, the need for and direction of the Guui Station Transfer Center have now been formally incorporated into the government’s mid- to long-term transportation policy. As the government has named strengthening financial support for transfer centers as a key policy, securing national funds for the project is also expected to gain traction.

Gwangmyeong City designated improvement of access to Guui Station as a policy pledge and has been pursuing the project. After completing the basic design for the installation of the "Guui Station Gwangmyeong-side entrance and transfer facilities" in 2024, the city continued consultations with relevant agencies, including KORAIL and the Hangang Basin Environmental Office, and consistently requested that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Metropolitan Transport Commission reflect it in the national basic plan.

In March last year, a meeting was held at the Cheolsan 1-dong Administrative Welfare Center, gathering representatives of disability organizations and nearby residents to discuss the mobility difficulties faced by the transportation disadvantaged and to gather opinions on the direction of the project.

Park Seungwon, Mayor of Gwangmyeong City, said, "We will accelerate efforts for securing national funding, designing the project, and consulting with relevant institutions so that citizens can use Guui Station conveniently and safely as soon as possible. Our goal is to create a city where everyone can travel easily to their desired destination and enjoy enhanced transportation services."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s latest Basic Plan includes 65 transfer center projects across the country. The Guui Station Transfer Center is one of nine new projects in the Seoul metropolitan area.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.