From Military Railway to Commuter Line, and Then a Park

The Gyeongui Line began as a military railway, saw long use as a commuter and freight line, and after going underground starting in 2005, its surface land was reborn as a park.

Key takeaways

After it opened, the Gyeongui Line saw long use as a commuter and freight railway. Starting in 2005, the Yongsan Line section began going underground, leaving a narrow, elongated strip of land at the surface. Fact The city of Seoul received a 50-year rent-free lease on this land from the Korea Rail Network Authority and developed it into a park. Fact Park construction began in 2009, and the entire route was completed on May 21, 2016. Fact

What to look for on site

The cross-sectional structure of the park built above the now-underground rail line (see signage)
Traces of different completion dates across different sections
The sequence of transformation: military railway, to commuter railway, to park

Editorial note

Rather than saying "the railway naturally became a park," make clear that this involved an administrative decision to go underground and an institutional process of a rent-free lease.