Korea Expressway Corporation says congestion will peak between 4 and 5 p.m., with roads clearing by early Sunday morning

- Nationwide traffic volume expected to reach about 5.9 million vehicles; 520,000 heading toward Greater Seoul

Vehicles crawl along the southbound Gyeongbu Expressway near Jamwon IC in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on Friday. [Yonhap]
Vehicles crawl along the southbound Gyeongbu Expressway near Jamwon IC in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on Friday. [Yonhap]

Return traffic began building in earnest across highways nationwide on Saturday, the third day of the Chuseok holiday, as more travelers headed back to Seoul while congestion on outbound routes gradually eased.

As of 9 a.m. Saturday, the Korea Expressway Corporation estimated travel times from major cities to the Seoul tollgate at seven hours from Busan, six hours and 40 minutes from Ulsan, six hours and 30 minutes from Mokpo, six hours from Daegu, five hours and 20 minutes from Gwangju, three hours and 40 minutes from Gangneung, and two hours and 30 minutes from Daejeon.

In the opposite direction, travel times from Seoul were estimated at five hours and 10 minutes to Busan, four hours and 50 minutes to Ulsan, four hours and 10 minutes to Daegu, three hours and 40 minutes to both Mokpo and Gangneung, three hours and 20 minutes to Gwangju, and one hour and 40 minutes to Daejeon.

With vehicles flooding back toward the capital from early in the morning, inbound lanes were already experiencing significant delays, while outbound congestion continued to ease.

Traffic was moving slowly along a 6-kilometer stretch of the Gyeongbu Expressway toward Seoul between Oksan Junction and the Cheongju rest stop, and along a 5-kilometer section of the Jungbu Naeryuk Expressway toward Yangpyeong between North Chungju and Chungju Junction.

The Korea Expressway Corporation forecast that outbound congestion, which began building in the morning, would peak around 4 to 5 p.m. and clear by 7 to 8 p.m.

Inbound return traffic is expected to be heaviest between 4 and 5 p.m., with roads not clearing until around 2 to 3 a.m. Sunday.

Nationwide traffic volume was projected at about 5.9 million vehicles for the day. The corporation estimated that 380,000 vehicles would travel from Greater Seoul to regional areas, while 520,000 would make the trip in the opposite direction.

Unlike the highways, major roads within Seoul were flowing smoothly.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government's traffic information system, no congestion had been reported on major arterial roads crossing the city, including Olympic-daero, Gangbyeon Bukno and the Inner Circular Road, as well as the East and West Arterial Roads and Gangnam Sunhwanno.


mokiya@heraldcorp.com