Seoul demolished an elevated highway in the city center, ignored warnings of traffic collapse, reduced the number of cars, tackled pollution, and transformed the asphalt into a river, an urban park, and a global symbol of urban renaissance.
Seoul turned asphalt into a river when it made a decision that seemed like political suicide: demolishing an elevated highway in the heart of the city, built in the 1950s and 60s as a symbol of modernization and a "car-centric" future. The city center, however, was in decline, plagued by heavy congestion, noise, air pollution, and an area that was becoming increasingly unattractive for living, working, and shopping.
