Seongnam City Completed Reconstruction of 17 Bridges in Tancheon by the First Half of Next Year

At around 9:45 a.m. on April 5, a bridge railing across the river collapsed in Jeongja-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do. Two pedestrians were hit by structures, killing one person and seriously injuring another.

Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province, announced on the 11th that it will complete the reconstruction of 17 bridges in Tancheon, including the Jeongja Bridge, by the first half of next year.

After removing the sidewalks on both sides of the bridge, the city completely reviewed the existing plan to build sidewalk bridges on both sides of the bridge, reducing the width of the lane to meet the standards of road facilities while maintaining the current number of lanes, and creating only one sidewalk on both sides of the existing roadway, and creating one sidewalk within the lane.

According to the results of the precise safety diagnosis of the sidewalk conducted at the end of April, the bridges to be rebuilt are 15 bridges that have been decided to be reinstalled after demolition of the sidewalk.

Six bridges, including Banga Bridge, Seohyeon Bridge, Dolma Bridge, Migeum Bridge, Sunae Bridge, and Gungnae Bridge, will be constructed on both sides of the roadway after removing the cantilever-structured sidewalk.

Nine bridges, including the Jeongja Bridge, will be promoted by adjusting the width of the lane on one side of the bridge to create a sidewalk in the roadway, and establish a sidewalk bridge only on the other side of the bridge.

Singi-Bodogyo Bridge and Baekgung-Bodogyo Bridge, which are walking-only bridges, will be used as they are after demolishing cantilever parts on both sides.

Seongnam Mayor Shin Sang-jin said, "The bridge scheduled for re-construction of the sidewalk will be able to shorten the construction period by installing a precast concrete culvert block under the sidewalk to ensure safety, and the budget will be reduced by more than 50% from 161 billion won in the first place."

The city will first carry out demolition work in winter after this November, when few citizens use Tancheon, and the bridge reconstruction work will be completed by the first half of next year.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced the results of an investigation into the cause of the collapse of the Jeongja Bridge pedestrian road in Seongnam City in April and measures to supplement the system.

The collapse of the Jeongja Bridge was caused by the penetration of snow removal agents and moisture, which damaged concrete, and weakened the supporting force of the rebar.

Date: 2023-07-11

Reporter: 서화목