Plans for Incheon subway line no. 3 coming down the pipeline, new Sangsang Platform to open in the first half of the year

Incheon is looking to build Incheon subway line no. 3 as part of the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project aimed at revitalizing the city’s old center. The plan is to generate synergy as Incheon opens the new Sangsang Platform in the first half of the year and piers1 and 8 to the public in the second half. Overall, these projects are expected to help the city redevelop its Inner Port area.

With the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project, a key pledge made by the 8th democratically elected administration of Incheon Metropolitan City for balanced development of the original city center, finally taking shape, the project is likely to pick up more speed going forward.

▲ Incheon is looking to build Incheon subway line no. 3 as part of the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project aimed at revitalizing the city’s old center. The plan is to generate synergy asIncheon opens the new Sangsang Platform in the first half of the year and piers 1 and 8 to the public in the second half. Overall, these projects are expected to help the city redevelop its Inner Port area. Image from a public briefing session for the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project held at Freedom Park in Jung-gu, Incheon, on February 1.

On February 1, Incheon hosted a public briefing session for the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project at Freedom Park Plaza in Jung-gu. More than 150 guests attended the session, most notably Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok, City Council Chairperson Heo Sik, Jung-gu Mayor KimJeong-heon, Dong-gu Mayor Kim Chan-jin, and other members of the public.

The session shared some strategic initiatives and plans focusing on four areas - original city center, culture/tourism, industrial economy, and inner port development - to improve the feasibility of the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project designed to inject new blood into the original city centers in Jung-gu and Dong-gu, and transform them into popular culture, tourism, and industry locations.

Firstly, to transform the original city centers in Jung-gu and Dong-gu, Incheon plans to thoroughly review the core “anchor projects” near subway stations, including Dongincheon Station, and accelerate their timelines. By building Incheon subway line no. 3,the City Administration is hoping to build a more user-oriented transportation system, which people can access from anywhere in the original city center within 15 minutes.

In the area of culture and tourism, the focus is on upgrading the cultural and tourism resources of the original downtown area. Incheon plans to identify some of the lesser-known attractions across the original city center, host festivals and events using waterfront venues, and develop green areas such as forest trails, wind trails, and walking trails to add more tourist attractions.

▲ The Inner Port Redevelopment project is led by the government (Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Incheon Port Authority), but as the project continues to be delayed, Incheon wants to restructure the project to one that is led by the City Government and bring projects on line quicker. Incheon is looking to generate synergy when it opens the new Sangsang Platform in the first half of the year and piers 1 and 8 to the public in the second half. Overall, these projects are expected to help the city redevelop its Inner Port area.

In the area of industrial economy, innovation of the original downtown industrial ecosystem will get under way with Incheon designating a new urban regeneration innovation district, transforming the original downtown area into a smart city district, and bringing in future high-tech industries, including urban air mobility (UAM)industries. In doing so, the city plans to lay the foundation for creating future growth engines for Incheon.

The Inner Port Redevelopment project is led by the government (Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Incheon Port Authority), but as the project continues to be delayed, Incheon wands to restructure the project to one that is led by the City Government and bring projects on line quicker. Incheon is looking to generate synergy when it opens the new Sangsang Platform in the first half of the year and piers 1 and 8to the public in the second half. Overall, these projects are expected to help the city redevelop its Inner Port area.

The City is ready to create more sophisticated and detailed action plans for the four strategic areas of the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project, and list them all in the Jemulpo Renaissance Master Plan, which the City will commission this month. In particular, the goal is to establish a Master Plan that everyone can accept by actively collecting feedback from the public.
The Jemulpo Renaissance Advisory Group, which was commissioned last October with experts in maritime ports, urban regeneration, architecture, culture, and art, has made important contributions in terms of setting the overall direction of the project and deriving action plans. Meanwhile, the 1883 Open Port Salon is expected to survey the public landscape to get a lay of the land in terms of public perception of the Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project.

Furthermore, Incheon will enact city ordinances to prepare a legislative foundation for the project. These ordinances will include a project promotion system, the Jemulpo Renaissance Committee for public communication, and a dedicated public-private partnership system.

Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok said, “The Jemulpo Renaissance Great Project will serve as the starting point for resolving the imbalance between our old city center and the new city districts, and ultimately revive our stagnating local economy.” The Mayor added, “By leading this project to success, we want to make Jemulpo, which led the modernization of Korea, into a new futuristic city where culture, tourism, and industry come together centered around our old city centers and the inner port area.”

He explained, “We will not only communicate with the public and actively reflect their feedback in executing the project, but also turn the project into an exemplary success story in which everyone can share and experience the fruits of the success. By doing so, we want to expand the scop