Skip to main content

North Korea astounds transport sector with road development plan

North Korea claims that it is establishing a strategic plan that will lift the country's struggling economy into prosperity as early as 2012. According to a missive from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), a 10 year economic plan has been unveiled that will see a total of US$100 billion being invested by the nation in 12 strategic sectors.
February 10, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSNorth Korea claims that it is establishing a strategic plan that will lift the country's struggling economy into prosperity as early as 2012. According to a missive from the 5710 Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), a 10 year economic plan has been unveiled that will see a total of US$100 billion being invested by the nation in 12 strategic sectors. It will also introduce the State General Bureau for Economic Development to deploy and oversee the plan. A key facet of the plan is for the construction of some 3,000km of roads. Exactly what will be driven on these new roads is as yet unclear. The country's ruling military elite are amongst the small minority of people who are in a position to own personal vehicles. Other than that, North Korea's military is the country's largest user of vehicles. The country also suffers from massive fuel shortages (of all types of fossil fuels) that result in whole areas of its national grid being closed down to conserve power, in addition to hindering vehicle transportation. It would seem logical that any new highways would therefore have to be designed around using bicycles as transportation, given that these do not rely on fuel for motive power.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Promoting advances in sustainable roads worldwide
    April 12, 2012
    Professor Martin Snaith, O.B.E., introduces an annual gathering that has grown over the years to become perhaps the world's foremost professional development forum promoting advances in sustainable roads worldwide. Over more than 15 years the Senior Road Executives Programme (SRE), organised by the internationally renowned Highways Group of the University of Birmingham, UK, in association with IRF, has established a worldwide reputation for providing top-quality professional development for executives worki
  • Hybrid cars are safer because they are heavier claim
    May 14, 2012
    Passengers in hybrid-powered cars are about 25% less likely to be injured in a crash than those in their conventional-powered counterparts, according to research released by the Highway Loss Data Institute, which claims that the additional weight of the hybrid engine adds an extra layer of safety over similar, non-hybrid cars. Cars with hybrid engines typically weigh about 10% more than their conventionally-powered twins.
  • Sweden to create permanent electric road
    January 26, 2022
    The road will be a 21km stretch of the E20 between Hallsberg and Örebro.
  • US road safety concern
    June 18, 2021
    There is concern over a worrying trend in US road safety