The court has once again decided that the Seoul city government should halt the construction of the 'Namsan Gondola.' Consequently, the plan for the gondola to operate from Namsan starting in 2026 has faced setbacks.
The Seoul High Court's Administrative Division 3 (presiding judge Yoon Kang-ryeol) recently dismissed the appeal regarding the Seoul city government's request to suspend the urban management plan implementation, as reported on the 31st.
Since 1962, the private corporation Korea Cablecar Industry has operated the cable car at Namsan. However, the facilities have aged and there have been cases where passengers had to wait over an hour to ride the cable car. The Seoul city government announced a plan to operate a gondola that can take passengers from Myeongdong to the summit of Namsan in just 5 minutes starting in 2026.
In response, Korea Cablecar Industry and others filed a lawsuit in August of last year against the Seoul city government to stop the Namsan gondola construction, citing the urban management plan suspension. The Seoul Administrative Court's Administrative Division 3 (presiding judge Choi Su-jin) accepted the suspension request in October of last year. The court stated, 'There is a concern that this case may cause irrecoverable damage to Korea Cablecar Industry and others.' The Seoul city government appealed the decision, but it was not accepted. On that day, the city announced that it would file a second appeal.