Suwon Singal–Singal JC stretch on Gyeongbu Expressway busiest at 224,000 vehicles a day

Korea Expressway Corporation's toll revenue reached 4.4 trillion won last year

A tollgate on a South Korean expressway [Newsis]
A tollgate on a South Korean expressway [Newsis]

The number of vehicles using South Korea's expressways has surged well past 5 million a day, driven by a post-COVID rebound in travel demand and the steady opening of new highway routes, data showed Thursday.

According to data submitted to Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Hwang Hee of the National Assembly's Land and Transportation Committee by the Korea Expressway Corporation, total expressway usage last year reached about 1.92 billion vehicles, averaging approximately 5.26 million per day.

That marks an increase of about 610,000 vehicles per day, or 13.1 percent, compared with the daily average of about 4.65 million recorded in 2021 — a rise achieved over just four years.

Daily average expressway usage climbed every year: 4.85 million in 2022, 4.99 million in 2023 and 5.12 million in 2024.

The Korea Expressway Corporation attributed part of the growth to a broader recovery in travel demand following the pandemic, noting that private car use had already risen during the COVID-19 period as commuters shifted away from public transportation.

The expansion of the expressway network through new route openings also contributed. The corporation said the opening of the Sejong–Pocheon Expressway last year had a particularly notable effect on traffic volumes.

Toll revenue rose alongside the increase in traffic. The Korea Expressway Corporation collected 4.4 trillion won ($3.28 billion) in toll revenue last year, up 5.5 percent from 2021, averaging 12.1 billion won per day.

The corporation noted, however, that toll revenue did not grow as fast as traffic volumes, citing a rise in short-distance trips and the expansion of privately operated toll roads.

The busiest tollgates were concentrated in the greater Seoul area. Among closed-system tollgates, the Seoul station recorded the highest daily average last year at 102,000 vehicles, followed by West Seoul at 98,000, Pangyo at 86,000 and South Incheon at 83,000. Among open-system tollgates, Guri-Namyangju topped the list at 193,000 vehicles per day, ahead of Gimpo at 187,000 and Seongnam at 182,000.

By route, the Gyeongbu Expressway carried the heaviest traffic, with a daily average of about 1.49 million vehicles last year.

The Gyeongbu Expressway also had the single busiest segment among all major stretches: the Suwon Singal–Singal Junction section recorded a daily average of 224,000 vehicles.

The Gyeongbu Expressway also accounted for a disproportionate share of accidents. Nine of the top 20 accident-prone segments nationwide were on the route. The stretches with the highest fatality counts were the Gyeongbu Expressway's Cheongju IC–Mokcheon IC section and the Jungbu Naeryuk Expressway's Gamgok–Yeoju section, each recording five deaths.

"The success of expressway policy hinges on how precisely we manage bottlenecks and high-risk segments where traffic and accidents are concentrated," Hwang said. "We need to reset investment priorities based on demand and risk levels, and verify that expansion, improvement and safety measures are actually translating into reduced congestion and fewer accidents."


hss@heraldcorp.com