South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

Imagine a city where owning or even using a car is completely optional: this is the South Korean government's proposal with the International Business District, a city that is being designed from scratch so that its residents do not have to use vehicles to travel. move around.

The project, which is being planned for the Songdo region, will cost $ 35 billion and started in 2002. The planning was all done with a focus on public transportation such as subways and buses, as well as alternatives such as bicycles. .

Songdo

The company responsible for making IBD happen is Gale International, and the district is expected to be ready by 2020, with an approximate size of 9 million square meters.

Another aspect is to make the area, located on the shores of the Yellow Sea, environmentally friendly as well. Urban planning is designed so that shopping structures, offices, hospitals and parks are all located close to the residential area - allowing people to move around on foot.

For people who like to ride, the IBD will feature 24 kilometers of cycle paths that will connect to an even larger 144-kilometer network in Songdo. About 40 percent of the district's areas will be set aside for green spaces, which is double what exists today in New York City, for example.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

South Korea is creating a city designed to have no cars.

A curiosity is that to eliminate the need for vehicles even more, garbage collection does not involve trucks: everything is placed in pneumatic tubes that suck the waste and send it directly to separation centers, where they are recycled or transformed into energy.

Currently 70, 000 people live in Songdo - well below the 300, 000 estimated by the South Korean government.