Lee orders resumption of highway project suspended due to allegations involving ex-first lady

▲ Hong Ik-pyo, presidential secretary for political affairs, announces the government's decision to resume a highway project during a press briefing at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on March 20, 2026. (Yonhap)

Lee-highway project

Lee orders resumption of highway project suspended due to allegations involving ex-first lady

By Kim Eun-jung

SEOUL, March 20 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung has ordered the resumption of a highway project that had been suspended for nearly three years over influence-peddling allegations involving former first lady Kim Keon Hee, a senior aide said Friday.

Hong Ik-pyo, presidential secretary for political affairs, announced the decision after the Seoul-Yangpyeong expressway project was put on hold in July 2023 amid allegations that its endpoint was changed to an area where Kim's family owns land in Yangpyeong, east of Seoul.

"The government plans to secure budget support to resume the project within the first half of this year," Hong told reporters. "A new feasibility study will be conducted to promptly determine the route, with the goal of breaking ground in late 2029."

Hong said the government made the decision to address traffic congestion and prepare for an expected increase in traffic as large-scale residential developments are expected to bring in new residents by 2029, although the project had been under investigation by a special counsel over the process of changing its endpoint.

"The government will move past political controversy and push ahead with the project swiftly to meet residents' needs," he said.

(END)

(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved