The link between metropolitan planning and transit-oriented development: An examination of the Rosario Plan in 1980 for Seoul, South Korea

- This article introduces the “Rosario” proposal's transit-oriented development (TOD) ideas for Seoul in 1980. The Rosario concept has contributed to Seoul's development toward a transit-oriented compact city since then.
- Byong-Kee Kahng (1980) initially proposed the Rosario concept of subway-oriented public transportation and high-density land use for Seoul to combat the lack of housing and transit connection in the city.
- The proposal originated as a metropolitan-scale plan to decentralize the old mono-centric spatial structure of the rapidly urbanized city with subway networks, and further included a prototype implementing TOD at an individual subway station area. The former is similar to previous TOD-related plans, such as Copenhagen's 1947 Finger plan, Stockholm's 1952 plan, and Paris's 1965 plan. The latter is analogous to Calthorpe's 1993 TOD proposal.
- Value-capture and self-sufficient public transit concepts had been developed in the Rosario plan with consideration to financial deficiencies in 1980s' Seoul. Increasing housing and population densities in subway station areas and proceeding eminent domain, property tax, and constructing public facilities were suggested in the plan.
- The Rosario proposal is applicable to mega-cities around the world, which can adopt the TOD concept in both metropolitan and district scales, especially in developing countries experiencing similar urban problems and economic situation as in Korea during the 1980s.

This study explores the 1980s Rosario proposal for Seoul and its implementation as part of the urban planning of the city, based on the concept of transit-oriented development (TOD), as an instrument to meet the challenges of housing shortage and road-traffic congestion. The proposal originated as a metropolitan-scale plan to decentralize the old mono-centric spatial structure of the rapidly urbanized city with subway networks, and further included a prototype featuring TOD in an individual subway station area. The integrated approach was an attempt to develop diverse value-capture strategies for self-sustaining transit systems. The Seoul city government included this concept in its first official comprehensive plan in 1990, and has since contributed to Seoul's development towards becoming a transit-oriented city. This study provides valuable evidence for cities in the developing world that have aspirations to become transit-oriented.