Seoul Metropolitan Councilor Park Seong-yeon (People Power Party, Gwangjin 2) urged measures for the repeated disaster damages and the flattening construction of Seobu Expressway during the Safety Construction Committee Disaster Safety Office’s work report at the 332nd temporary session held on the 1st.
Park pointed out, “Traffic congestion is severe due to lane control and signal systems in the flattening construction process of Seobu Expressway,” and added, “The inconvenience of using toll roads by citizens is also continuously raised.” She emphasized that “there is a large concern that traffic distribution may not be smooth even after the construction,” and insisted on the necessity of detailed consideration from the initial stage.
In response, the head of Seoul’s Disaster Safety Office announced that the construction of the Omokgyo underpass would be completed seven months earlier, moving the original finish date from June next year to November this year. He said, “We will conduct a six-month monitoring period post-construction to determine the need for additional construction and supplementary measures to minimize inconvenience for citizens.”
Park also highlighted issues in the disaster response system by mentioning summer seasonal heavy rain-induced landslides, retaining wall and fence collapses, and manhole accidents. She suggested, “Although similar disasters repeat annually, related budgets are not adequately reflected, so a comprehensive investigation of the yearly and typewise disaster occurrences should be conducted to prepare responses cooperable with boroughs.”
The Disaster Safety Office head responded, “We will meticulously prepare for predictable disasters and supplement the budget review process for commonly occurring disaster types.”
Councilor Park Seong-yeon urged, “Seoul should prioritize minimizing citizen safety and inconvenience in transportation infrastructure construction and disaster response,” and added, “We must reinforce budgets and institutional devices that can prevent repetitive disasters.”