The Seohaean Expressway (

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

: 서해안 고속도로; Seohaean Gosok Doro), meaning "West Coast Expressway", is a

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, connecting

Mokpo Mokpo (; ''Mokpo-si'') is a city in South Jeolla Province, South Korea, located at the southwestern tip of the Korean Peninsula, close to Yudal mountain. Mokpo has frequent high-speed train services to Seoul, and is the terminus for a number of f ...

Gunsan Gunsan (), also romanized as Kunsan, is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. It is on the south bank of the Geum River just upstream from its exit into the Yellow Sea. It has emerged as a high-tech manufacturing industrial city and an int ...

Dangjin Dangjin () is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. It stands on the south shore of the Bay of Asan. Dangjin borders Incheon, Pyeongtaek, and Hwaseong by sea, and Seosan, Yesan, and Asan by land. Its name means "Tang ferry," an ...

, and

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

. It is numbered 15. The entire length from Seoul to Mokpo is 345 km and the posted speed limit is 110 km/h, enforced primarily by speed cameras. It is connected of Seohae Grand Bridge in Pyeongtaek to Dangjin. The branch expressways of the Seohaean Expressway are Seocheon–Gongju Expressway and Pyeongtaek–Siheung Expressway. Typical facilities of this expressway is

Seohae Bridge The Seohae Bridge ( ko, 서해대교) is a cable-stayed bridge that connects Pyongtaek and Dangjin, South Korea. Bridge construction started in 1993 and was completed in 2000 at a cost of 677.7 billion won. A prop (and some precast segments) fe ...

(

: 서해대교; Seohae Daegyo) which the total length of 7.3 km linking the

Pyeongtaek Pyeongtaek () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Located in the southwestern part of the province, Pyeongtaek was founded as a union of two districts in 940, during the Goryeo dynasty. It was elevated to city status in 1986 and is home t ...

(

Gyeonggi Province Gyeonggi-do (, ) is the most populous province in South Korea. Its name, ''Gyeonggi'', means "京 (the capital) and 畿 (the surrounding area)". Thus, ''Gyeonggi-do'' can be translated as "Seoul and the surrounding areas of Seoul". Seoul, the na ...

) and

(

Chungnam Province South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located in ...

). The bridge is the third long bridge in the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...

. The highway is a major highway linking the Seohaean Region(서해안권) for the first north–south axis (남북 제1축), the road through the

South Jeolla Province South Jeolla Province (; ''Jeollanam-do''; ), also known as Jeonnam, is a province of South Korea. South Jeolla has a population of 1,902,324 (2014) and has a geographic area of located in the Honam region at the southwestern tip of the Korean ...

North Jeolla Province North Jeolla Province (; ''Jeollabuk-do''), also known as Jeonbuk, is a province of South Korea. North Jeolla has a population of 1,869,711 (2015) and has a geographic area of 8,067 km2 (3,115 sq mi) located in the Honam region in the southwes ...

South Chungcheong Province South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located in ...

History

* December 1991 – Construction begin * May 1993 – Construction begin of Seohae Grand Bridge * 6 July 1994 – Seoul–

Ansan Ansan (Hangeul: , ) is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. It lies southwest of Seoul and is part of the Seoul National Capital Area. It is connected to Seoul by rail via Seoul Subway Line 4. It is situated on the Yellow Sea coast and so ...

segment opened to traffic. * 17 December 1996 – Ansan–

segment opened to traffic. * 25 August 1998 – Mokpo–

Muan Muan County (''Muan-gun'') is a county in South Jeolla Province (''Jeollanam-do''), South Korea. In 2005, Muan County became the capital of ''Jeollanam-do'' following the transfer of the provincial office from its previous location, Gwangju to th ...

segment opened to traffic. * 30 October 1998 – Gunsan–

Seocheon Seocheon County () is a county in Chungcheongnam-do, South Korea. It is famous for its seafood and location near the mouth of the Geum River. Administrative divisions Seocheon county has two major centers, Janghang-eup and Seocheon-eup. Seocheon- ...

segment opened to traffic. * 10 November 2000 – Seohae Grand Bridge segment opened to traffic. and Pyeongtaek–

segment opened to traffic. * 27 September 2001 – Dangjin–Seocheon segment opened to traffic. * 21 December 2001 – The last segment, Gunsan–Muan segment opened to traffic. * 30 July 2010 – Work begins to widen to 8 lanes in Ansan–Iljik Junction. * 23 November 2011 – Jungnim Junction opened to traffic. * October 2014 –

– W. Pyeongtaek Junction Section (10.3 km) road expansion started construction. * November 2014 – The 10-lane expansion of the Ansan JCT – Jonam JCT (2.9 km) section was completed. * June 2015 – The 10-lane expansion of the Jonam JCT – Mokgam IC (3.2 km) section was completed. * 23 December 2015 – The 10-lane expansion of the Mokgam IC – Iljik JCT (3.8 km) section was completed. * 3 July 2016 – Soha Junction opened to traffic.

Compositions

Lanes

* Mokpo IC – Dangjin JC, Iljik JC-West Seoul End: 4 * Dangjin JC – Bibong IC, Maesong IC-Ansan JC, Jonam JC–Mokgam IC: 6 * Mokgam IC – Iljik JC, Bibong IC – Maesong IC, West Seoul TG-Jonam JC: 8 * Ansan-Iljik, Yangjae-Giheung, unjung Bridge and Seoul Ring Road (Rigid Pavement) 130 km JC – : 10

Length

346.1 km (215.1 mi)

Speed limits

* Jungnim JC – Maesong IC : 110 km/h * Maesong IC – Seoul(Geumcheon) : 100 km/h * Mokpo – Jungnim JC : 90 km/h

List of facilities

*IC: Interchange, JC: Junction, SA: Service area, TG:Tollgate

Events

MBC's Entertainment program,

Infinite Challenge ''Infinite Challenge'' (; abbreviated as ''Mudo'') is a South Korean television entertainment program, distributed and syndicated by MBC, that ran from 2005 to 2018. As of January 2013, it had the largest market share for its timeslot; with ...

held a in Haengdam Island Service area in June 2011.

External links

MOLIT

South Korean Government The Government of South Korea is the union government of the Republic of Korea, created by the Constitution of South Korea as the executive, legislative and judicial authority of the republic. The president acts as the head of state and is the ...

Transport Department The Transport Department of the Government of Hong Kong is a department of the civil service responsible for transportation-related policy in Hong Kong. The department is under the Transport and Logistics Bureau. The Transport Department was cre ...

{{coord missing, South Korea Expressways in South Korea Roads in South Jeolla Roads in North Jeolla Roads in South Chungcheong Roads in Gyeonggi Roads in Seoul