The date when Great Train eXpress (GTX)-A trains in the Seoul metropolitan area pass through Samseong Station without stopping looks set to be pushed back by at least about a year from the original target of the end of June this year. After it emerged that a large amount of rebar was missing from the station’s columns, reinforcement became unavoidable, and the government has even put demolishing and rebuilding the columns under review.
On the 3rd, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said that, regarding the construction errors at Samseong Station, it will verify the results of the joint government inspection and the reinforcement plans from the Korea Concrete Institute, a specialized body, and then decide the final alternative within this year. The ministry and the Seoul Metropolitan Government plan to finalize specific reinforcement measures by year-end.
A total of 12 column reinforcement plans were candidates, including a steel plate reinforcement plan proposed by the Seoul city government. The government narrowed them to two. One enlarges the column cross-section with high-strength mortar while placing rebar, and the other is a composite reinforcement method that adds steel plate reinforcement to it.
The Korea Concrete Institute judged that, because the amount of missing rebar is large and the columns lack the structural strength to hold, it is hard to simply follow existing steel plate reinforcement cases. The institute is checking through full-scale mock-up tests whether the reinforcement materials perform as required. The ministry, without ruling out rebuilding, plans to pick the final plan by weighing safety, construction conditions and construction period together.
Since May 21, the joint government inspection team has examined all sections, 1 through 4, of the Yeongdong-daero complex development project, including Section 3 where the rebar omission was found, to see whether design and construction were appropriate and whether fire and electrical facilities are safe. In the process of inspecting with 3D analysis, additional problems emerged, such as insufficient concrete cover thickness and the need to check whether bearing strength is adequate, and consultations on whether to reinforce are under way.
Under the original plan, the non-stop pass was to take place at the end of June this year and full opening, including stops at Samseong Station, in 2028. If reinforcement work is decided on, the ministry expects work to start in December and, after trial commercial operation is completed, the non-stop pass to become possible around the first half of next year. It is also considering shortening the schedule by running construction and trial operation at the same time.
“We will take administrative measures such as imposing demerit points on the violations confirmed in the inspection, and consult with relevant agencies to bring forward the date of the GTX-A non-stop pass through Samseong Station as much as possible,” a ministry official said.