Park Hyeon-seop, head of the Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team of Korea Expressway Corp.

Staff with the Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team makes gestures in a resolution to make the Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway a brand one. (Photos: Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team)

Korea Expressway Corp. (KEC) is executing a project to build a 34.1 km-long expressway – the National Highway No. 14 – that will link Hamyang and Hapcheon, Gyeongsangnam-do. The Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway is part of an ongoing project to construct a 144.1 km-long expressway that will connect Hamyang and Ulsan.

The Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway is divided into six portions. Work on the 3rd section connecting Dundong-ri, Namsang-myeon, Geochang-gun, and Gwajeong-ri, Sinweon-myeon, initially kicked off in June 2017, and work on the other five portions was launched in February 2018. The goal is the whole expressway will open to traffic in 2024. The progress of the project now stands at 5.2 percent.

The projected Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway, to be connected the Jigok Interchange on the Tongyeong-Daejeon Line, will penetrate Hamyang, Geochang and Hapcheon counties, the mountainous area west of Gyeongsangnam-do to reach Ulsan. Due to the mountainous area, structures such as bridges and tunnels will be built on 74.2 percent of the expressway’s total length. The project costs 1,298.9 billion won.

The Hamyang-Hapcheon expressway will have facilities such as two junctions - Bukhamyang and Geochang; two interchanges - Namgeochang and Hapcheonho; four service areas, including rest areas for motorists; 42 bridges; and 10 tunnels.

As for the business benefit value of the project, the driving distance between Hamyang and Hapcheon will be reduced from current 53.1 km to 34.1 km, and the driving time will be dramatically cut to 21.9 minutes from 65 minutes, bringing expected benefits worth an estimated 833.4 billion won annually.

Furthermore, the expressway is expected to spur the development of the northwestern area of Gyeongsangnam-do and act as an artery for industry and tourism that will bridge Gyeongsang and Honam provinces by being connected with the Iksan-Jangsoo Expressway.

True to the catchphrase “Communication, Shared Growth, and Sharing with Local Residents”, Officials with the Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team conduct activities to make the construction work a boom of the local economy.

The Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team of Korea Expressway Corp., overseeing the construction of the expressway, is devoting itself to removing stumbling blocks, such as issues related to land compensation (now, 65 percent of the compensation has been settled) and excavation of cultural assets to pave the way for the initial stage of the project.

The Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team has adopted the catchphrase “Communication, Shared Growth, and Sharing with Local Residents,” in order to make the construction work a boom of the local economy. It is committed to conducting the work in the way local residents benefit, the team says.

Major construction materials such as sand and ready-mixed concrete, produced from the neighborhood areas of the expressway route, are used to promote shared growth with the districts and contribute to the local economy. The team has put into action activities such as ‘One Section-One River Watchout Drive’ and providing major construction facilities to make room for neighborhood residents’ resting areas to make construction harmonious with the local community.

The team is making all-out efforts to eliminate inconveniences residents experience and their complaints by visiting residents and holding ‘work explanation sessions’ and ‘implementing prior notices on major work’ to promote communication with neighborhood residents.

Park Hyeon-seop, head of the Hamyang-Hapcheon Expressway Construction Team of Korea Expressway Corp., said, “We’re looking forward to making a wonderful drive on the 144.1 km-long brand expressway stretching from Hamyang to Ulsan in upcoming 2024.”