UIJEONGBU -- Gyeonggi Province is considering building a new bridge connecting Goyang and Gimpo, two western satellite cities of Seoul separated by the Han River, officials said Wednesday. The city of Gimpo on Friday proposed the construction of a 1.4-kilometer bridge, named Yangchon Bridge, to meet growing transport demand between the two cities and disperse traffic concentrated on existing Ilsan Bridge, they said. If constructed, it will be the 30th bridge over the Han River. Gimpo and Go

South Korea's new coronavirus cases spiked to over 2,600 on Wednesday, two days after the country began its "living with COVID-19" scheme as part of a broader plan to gradually lift the virus restrictions. The country reported 2,667 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total caseload to 370,640, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Wednesday's tally marked a sharp hike from 1,589 reported a day earlier. It marks the first time since Sept. 30 that the daily new case

Gap between two-mega regions hits all-time high of 4 million

  The number of delivery workers in South Korea swelled nearly 12 percent in the second half of last year to hit a record high amid the coronavirus pandemic, government data showed. Asia’s fourth-largest economy had 390,000 carriers as of the end of December last year, up 11.8 percent from a year earlier, according to data from Statistics Korea. The tally covers mail carriers, door-to-door couriers, food delivery workers, newspaper delivery workers and carriers of milk and other bev

Nearly half of all recent COVID-19 cases in Seoul were breakthrough infections, a Seoul city official said Tuesday. "Of the 646 new cases confirmed in Seoul on Sunday, 49.4 percent, or 319 cases, were breakthrough cases," Park Yoo-mi, a disease control official at the Seoul metropolitan government, said in a briefing. "The rate of breakthrough infections in Seoul is higher than the nationwide average," she noted. According to the city government, Seoul has recorded 12,663

Seoulites complain of noise, frequent traffic violations as motorcyclists rush deliveries

A total of 299 people were caught drunk driving on the first night after business hour restrictions were lifted and gathering size limits were raised Monday under the government's "living with COVID-19" scheme, police said. Of them, 89 were caught with blood alcohol levels high enough to have their license suspended and another 200 with levels warranting license revocation, according to the National Police Agency. The remaining 10 were caught for refusing to take a breathalyzer test.

South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 2,000 for the second day in a row on Tuesday amid its "living with COVID-19" scheme meant to bring the country gradually back to pre-pandemic normalcy. The country reported 1,589 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total caseload to 367,974, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The daily caseload fell below the 2,000 level on Monday after reporting more than 2,000 cases for four days in a row. Of the total, 1,578 wer

South Korea plans to gradually lift restrictions on arrivals of migrant workers prompted by the pandemic starting later this month as the country has begun to take steps to return to normalcy, the labor minister said Monday. "In light of the shift to 'living with COVID-19' scheme, we're going to push for a measure to gradually ease entry restrictions on foreign workers," labor minister An Kyung-duk said during a visit to a workplace that employs migrant workers. All foreign workers w

City centers in Seoul welcomed back the return of rush hour crowds Monday morning as office workers and students resumed their in-person lives under the government's "living with COVID-19" scheme aimed at bringing the nation gradually back to pre-pandemic normalcy. South Korea activated on Monday the first of the three-stage scheme to gradually phase out coronavirus restrictions as more than 70 percent of the population have been fully vaccinated. Under the latest measure effective

Over 1,000 cited for violating quarantine rules over Halloween weekend, police say

Blue-collar jobs are getting more respect as of late, but there’s still a long way to go

South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 2,000 for the first time in five days on Monday as the country began its "living with COVID-19" scheme meant to phase out coronavirus restrictions amid the rising rate of vaccinations. On Monday, the government relaxed the social distancing rules as part of a broader plan to gradually lift the virus restrictions by the end of February. South Korea reported 1,686 new COVID-19 cases, including 1,666 local infections, raising the total case

South Korean multiplex operators have braced for a long-awaited comeback of the audience to movie theaters as a gradual return to normalcy from the COVID-19 pandemic started Monday. The local health authorities earlier announced plans to go ahead with the "living with COVID-19" scheme from the first day of November, phasing out coronavirus restrictions such as nighttime curfews on cafes, restaurants, theaters and other multiuse facilities. Leading multiplex chains CJ CGV and Lotte Ci

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Sunday it is time for "warm consumption," noting difficulties faced by small business owners amid COVID-19, as South Korea is set to enforce a phased scheme for a gradual return to normal life this week. Kim made the remarks in a Facebook post after he attended an online opening ceremony of the Korea Sale FESTA, an annual nationwide shopping festival, which will kick off its 15-day run on Monday.  "It's time when there is a need for warm con