DAEGU City in Korea has finalised plans for the city’s fourth urban transit line. The 12.6km line is now planned to use steel-wheeled automated guideway transit (AGT) technology similar to the driverless Ui Line in Seoul and the Busan Gimhae Light Rail Transit line, also a driverless metro.
The city said it decided to use the steel-wheeled system after consulting with manufacturers and experts. Factors in favour of the approach included ease of maintenance, safety, passenger convenience, and cost.
Daegu’s urban rail system currently comprises two standard metro lines, lines 1 and 2, and an elevated monorail, Line 3.
Line 4 will start at Suseong District Stadium station, which is already served by Line 3. It will head north, interchanging with Line 2 at Beomeo station and Line 1 at Dongdaegu station. It will then serve stations at Kyungpook National University and Exco, the city’s convention centre, which is also due to be served by a proposed circular line.
Pre-feasibility studies for Line 4 were completed in 2020, and work started on the master plan in May 2021. The finalised plan sees the addition of one station and the relocation of another.
The location of the rolling stock maintenance depot has been a point of contention during the planning phase, with communities near the original location voicing concerns which resulted in the consideration of alternative sites. The site of an abattoir due for decommissioning next year has now been chosen due to its distance from residential areas and capacity for future expansion.
The master plan will now go through a consultation process with city council members later this month. It will then be submitted to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (Molit) for approval, with an official announcement expected to be made in November. Daegu says that it plans to open Line 4 by 2030.
“Following public forums and community meetings, we have developed an optimal plan after a thorough review of the various comments made by experts and citizens, including the creation of new stations and changes in the location of the depot site,” says Daegu Metropolitan Transit Corporation president, Mr Kim Ki-hyuk. “We will do our best to ensure that metro Line 4 opens in 2030.”
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