Incheon Metropolitan City has moved to improve pedestrian access around the 1883 Open Port Plaza to enhance walking convenience for residents.
The city announced on the 23rd that it completed construction of a new access road directly connecting the Open Port Plaza to a temporary walkway on Injung-ro. The 12-meter-long, 10-meter-wide access road links previously severed pedestrian routes and enables passage across a disused railway site. Citizens can now reach the plaza via a more intuitive and convenient path.
Incheon has been carrying out phased improvements on the abandoned railway land surrounding the plaza. The city replaced aging security fences with open, low-profile barriers and cleared neglected waste and overgrown vegetation. It then built a 277-meter temporary walkway connecting existing sidewalks to the former railway site, opening pedestrian space to the public.
The new access road was established through coordination with relevant agencies. The city secured land-use consent from the Korea National Railway Corporation, which owns and manages the disused railway site, and completed all administrative procedures related to the railway protection zone.
With the opening of the access road, a complete pedestrian corridor now links the Open Port area, the temporary walkway, and the Open Port Plaza. The district is expected to be transformed into an open urban space freely accessible to citizens.
Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok said, "With the completion of the access road following fence removal, environmental cleanup, and temporary walkway construction, the Open Port Plaza has moved much closer into citizens' daily living sphere. We will continue to expand urban regeneration projects that residents can tangibly experience."
