Koreas restore regular cross-border traffic

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South Korean officials say regular traffic has been restored across the heavily fortified border with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, allowing renewed access to their jointly run Kaesong Industrial District.

South Korea's Unification Ministry said on Tuesday the border will open 23 times a day to traffic to and from Kaesong, up from the previous six. In addition, there will no longer be any restrictions on the number of people and vehicles allowed to cross at any one time.

Lee Jong-Joo, Spokesperson South Korea Unification Ministry, said, "Road access to the Kaesong Industrial District and the Diamond Mountain region has been normalized and has been restored to last December's volume. This means that as of 8:30 a.m. today, entries and exits to the industrial park will take place every 30 minutes."

The DPRK's traffic restrictions since December affected the flow of goods and personnel to and from the factory park. The resumption has improved workers' morale.

Han Maeng-Woo, South Korean worker, said, "Until now, my company had temporarily stopped its investment. But I think more investment will now take place."

South Korean cargo trucks head to the North Korean city of Kaesong, as South Korean Army soldiers look on at the customs, immigration  and quarantine office in Paju, South Korea, near the border village  of Panmunjom, the Demilitarized Zone which has separated the two  Koreas since the Korean War, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2009. Inter-Korean  border traffic returned to normal on Tuesday, ending months of restrictions imposed by Pyongyang on South Korean workers and cargo  trucks to protest Seoul's hard-line North Korea policy. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)