Traffic builds up on highways as people return to Seoul amid Lunar New Year holiday

Bomi Yoon

Vehicles clog the southbound lanes on the Gyeongbu Expressway in Seoul, as millions of Koreans begin their annual exodus out of the capital city toward their hometowns during the extended Lunar New Year holiday,  Feb. 10. Yonhap

Vehicles clog the southbound lanes on the Gyeongbu Expressway in Seoul, as millions of Koreans begin their annual exodus out of the capital city toward their hometowns during the extended Lunar New Year holiday, Feb. 10. Yonhap

Traffic on major highways started to build up nationwide Sunday morning, as millions of Koreans started to return to Seoul on the third day of the four-day Lunar New Year holiday.

People began making their way back to the nation’s capital Sunday after spending Lunar New Year’s Day, Saturday, at their hometowns.

According to the state-run Korea Expressway Corp., a drive from the southeastern port city of Busan to Seoul, a distance of 325 kilometers, was expected to take about six hours and 40 minutes as of 9 a.m. From Gwangju, 267 km south of the capital, the drive was expected to take five hours and 30 minutes.

Korea Expressway Corp. said traffic toward Seoul was expected to peak around 4-5 p.m. Sunday, and it will likely ease around 2-3 a.m. the next day.

It estimated 5.15 million vehicles would hit the road Sunday. (Yonhap)

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