Minister Park Sang-woo stated on the 23rd that he would conduct a thorough review of underground construction matters related to the collapse accident at the construction site of the Shin-Ansan Line in Iljik-dong, Gwangmyeong City.
On this day, Minister Park attended the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee meeting and said, "I will thoroughly review the design standards for underground construction and the management of bids to prevent poor construction, as well as management and supervision," adding, "Based on the investigation results from the accident investigation committee, I will prepare and carry out measures that can respond to other accidents."
Minister Park emphasized regarding management and supervision of private railway projects, "Whether it’s a private project or a public project, we cannot neglect safety management," and added, "I will also re-examine the overall management system for private projects."
In response to the criticism that the poor ground conditions of the Shin-Ansan Line led to the accident without improvements in the design, Minister Park said, "The accident investigation committee will objectively investigate to conclude whether the design was faulty, whether the additional information was not reflected in the design, or if it was reflected but not applied in the construction manual."
Minister Park also addressed the recent series of major sinkhole incidents across the country, stating, "As underground structures are increasing, it is no longer a simple one-time accident, and it has become a phenomenon that can truly be described as 'living with sinkholes.'" He added, "I will develop effective measures with a new resolve that differs from what has been done so far."
Minister Park showed his willingness to re-examine the right to stop work on site. He said, "I understand that the Ministry of Employment and Labor sent a work stoppage notice to the contractor before the collapse," and added, "We will review the authority for on-site management, whether from the Ministry of Land or the Ministry of Employment and Labor, in emergency situations."
On this day, Minister Park stated regarding the string of disasters, including major forest fires, that he believes his ministry bears the greatest responsibility, and he assured, "I will do my utmost to prevent recurrence."
Minister Park explained the requirements for the 'special urban regeneration project' due to the damage, stating, "The scale of the damage survey will be confirmed by early May," and added, "Once the scale of the damage is officially confirmed, the local government will apply based on that."
Regarding the inclusion of a budget related to disaster recovery in the supplemental budget, Minister Park said, "Even if the physical completion occurs next year, the advantage is that we can start about eight months earlier than next year's main budget by doing the design and selecting the contractor within this year."
Minister Park said, "Through accurate demand surveys, we plan to supply dwellings in the forms that residents most desire, such as, while it's not my neighborhood, the neighborhood next to where I used to live."
Minister Park also mentioned the results of the Board of Audit and Inspection report that indicated the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport had distorted major national statistics, such as housing prices, during the Moon Jae-in administration. Minister Park expressed that he feels "very regretful" about this, but noted, "It is not too late to apologize to the public after things are more firmly established."