Gangwon State to Launch 11 Key SOC Projects Worth 11.27 Trillion Won in 2026

Gangwon State Gov. Kim Jin-tae reveals a plan to commence projects worth 11 trillion won this year, which accounts for more than half of the 22.3 trillion won currently allocated for SOC transport network projects at the provincial government building on Jan. 2. (Photo: Gangwon State)

Gangwon State announced on Feb. 2 that it will officially commence projects worth 11 trillion won this year, which accounts for more than half of the 22.3 trillion won currently allocated for SOC transport network projects.

A total of 40 SOC transport network projects are underway in the state Among these, 11 new projects worth 11.2798 trillion won will begin this year. This represents 50.5% of the total project budget, marking the largest commencement scale in the history of Gangwon State’s SOC investment.

Gangwon State has prioritized SOC expansion as one of its core tasks.

To Gangwon State, this year is expected to be the “Year of Execution” where large-scale SOC projects that were previously in the planning and preparation stages will move into actual implementation.

In particular, the projects starting this year are expected to serve as the core foundation that will reshape Gangwon State’s transportation map over the next decade.

The Yongmun–Hongcheon Wide-Area Railway will begin its feasibility study following the passage of a preliminary feasibility study.

This marks the official first step of a long-discussed project that has been over 100 years in the making.

The Second Gyeongchun National Road, which had been at a standstill for 10 years, finalized its total project cost last year. With 81 billion won allocated for this year, construction work is set to begin in the first half of 2026.

For the Yeongwol–Samcheok Freeway, a key transport axis for southern Gangwon State, 5 billion won has been secured to begin the feasibility study.

The Jecheon–Yeongwol Freeway will have a budget of 41 billion won and begin construction in the first half of the year.

Additionally, construction for major road projects — including Seomyeon Bridge, Gwangdeok Tunnel, Wonju’s Sillim–Bongyang Road, Hongcheon’s Dongmak–Gaeya Road, Nodong–Jaun, Yeongwol’s Jucheon–Panun Road and Jucheon–Hanbando Road — will also begin within this year.

Through these efforts, Gangwon State will scale up inter-regional mobility and accelerate the elimination of transportation blind spots.

In particular, the Samcheok-Gangneung High-Speed Project is expected to bring about a landmark transformation in Gangwon’s transportation services across both roads and railways.

This will bring Gangwon State closer to the era of Gangwon State which people can visit faster and more conveniently from any places in Korea.

Local Festivals Selected as Korea’s 2026–2027 Cultural Tourism Festivals

Gangwon State announced on Jan. 26 that four of its local festivals were selected for Korea’s major 2026–2027 cultural tourism festivals selected by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

In this announcement, the Gangneung Coffee Festival, the Pyeongchang Trout Festival and the Jeongseon Arirang Festival were re-designated while Cheorwon Hantan River Ice Trekking was newly named as one of the seven newly designated festivals nationwide.

Organizers of the four selected festivals will each receive 40 million won in financial support annually from the Korean government for the next two years.

Along with this, a comprehensive support system will be activated to boost their global competitiveness including international promotion, the development of tourism products, and the improvement of reception facilities and systems using AI technology.

Gangwon State will link these selected festivals with the 2025–2026 Visit Gangwon Year project to send tourists from the Seoul Metropolitan Area to Gangwon State and reorganize festival sites as comprehensive venues for experiencing Korean cultures.

Increase of Tourists in 2025 Visit Gangwon Year

The Gangwon Tourism Foundation announced on Feb. 9 that the total number of tourists who visited Gangwon State in 2025 was approximately 154.6 million, an increase of about 4.8 million (3.2%) compared to the previous year according to a big data-based analysis of tourism trends.

Domestic visitors ascended by approximately 4.62 million (3.2%) and foreign tourists by about 180,000 (5.7%), indicating an upward trend in demand for Gangwon tourism among both locals and foreigners.