Chungcheongnam-do has launched a full-scale effort to resolve traffic congestion on Cheonan Southern Boulevard (National Route 21), which is widely regarded as one of the worst commute corridors in the province.

The province plans to minimize inconvenience for residents by implementing phased measures, including improving signals at major intersections, expanding left-turn lanes, widening roads, and securing alternative routes.

On the morning of the 16th at 6:50 AM, Governor Park Soo-hyun visited Southern Boulevard in Cheongdang-dong, Cheonan-si, to inspect the traffic congestion situation and review countermeasures.

Daily traffic volume on Cheonan Southern Boulevard has remained high, recording △69,070 vehicles in 2023, △69,394 vehicles in 2024, and △68,608 vehicles last year.

This means that more than 25 million vehicles traveled along Southern Boulevard over the past year.

Along Southern Boulevard, major intersections such as Hasin, Saemal, and Cheongdang repeatedly suffer from bottleneck phenomena due to concentrated traffic and signal waiting times.

Consequently, the travel time during peak commute hours for the 14.9-kilometer section from Jangjae Intersection 2 in Asan Baebang to Mokcheon Intersection in Cheonan is 51 minutes, with an average speed of only 17.5 kilometers per hour.

To resolve this traffic congestion, the province, together with Cheonan-si, is preparing phased measures ranging from traffic operation improvements to the construction and expansion of new roads.

First, in the short term, the province will pursue improvements and synchronization of major intersection signal systems and the expansion of left-turn lanes.

In the medium term, linking with projects already being pursued by Cheonan-si, such as upgrading the Cheongsam and Dongbu intersections, the province will discover additional improvement projects and carry out lane expansions and intersection structure improvements.

Through these measures, the province expects to reduce travel time between Jangjae Intersection 2 and Mokcheon Intersection by about 10 minutes.

In the long term, a new alternative arterial road will be secured from Jangjae Intersection 2 to Mokcheon Intersection.

The province is closely cooperating with Cheonan-si and local lawmakers to reflect the "Baebang-Mokcheon" project—a core initiative capable of dispersing traffic on National Route 21 and drastically improving traffic congestion in Cheonan’s southern region—in the 7th National Highway and National-Provincial Road Construction Plan.

To secure inclusion in the national plan, the province will also pursue related studies to comprehensively analyze regional conditions and traffic demand, thereby solidifying the logic for project implementation.

Once the alternative road is secured, travel time from Jangjae Intersection 2 to Mokcheon Intersection is expected to be significantly reduced to 16 minutes.

During the on-site inspection that day, Governor Park encouraged field workers, including surveyors deployed for traffic volume surveys starting on the 15th, and listened to field opinions through a discussion meeting.

Along with this, he examined the traffic conditions and congested sections of Southern Boulevard during morning commute hours.

Governor Park stated, "Since the traffic congestion in Cheonan’s southern region is an inconvenience that citizens experience every day, we should not just look forward to long-term road expansion, but carefully examine intersections and signal systems that can be improved right away."

He added, "Together with Cheonan-si, we will find practical solutions in the field and seamlessly promote measures ranging from short-term traffic operation improvements to mid-to-long-term road expansions to create changes that citizens can truly feel."

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