Seoul, the City that Never Sleeps, Expands Late-Night Rides
According to Seoul statistics, public transit is responsible for 65% of average daily traffic of 32 million trips in the city – 40% corresponds to the metro system and 25% to the bus system. The Seoul metro system comprises 22 metro lines in 746 stations connecting the whole metropolitan area of Seoul and the Gyeonggi province, where many people regularly commute to Seoul. Also, in Seoul city alone, around 7,400 buses service approximately 5 million daily passengers.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) started operating late-night public transport service in response to the high rise in passenger demand following the citywide lifting of social distancing rules, resulting in an increase in public transport capacity by about 40% during late hours.
This policy is aimed at increasing the city’s public transport capacity by expanding public transport service to relieve travel inconveniences during late hours, such as difficulties in hailing taxis. As such, the city has expanded its late-night bus service starting last month and extended hours for city buses, etc.
The city pushed for an increase in public transport service by up to about 40% of existing shortages compared to pre-pandemic capacity, showing expanded late-night service capacity.
Daily ridership also surpassed 10 million for the first time in two years. This is 85.5% compared to pre-pandemic numbers and is continuously increasing due to the expanded supply of public transport with the explosive increase in late-night service demand.
The city will continuously monitor public transport operation data, the status of increased ridership, and more, considering additional methods, such as raising the fleet count in areas with high citizen ridership.
Seoul will operate all modes of public transport, including bus, taxi and subway, to fully implement measures to enhance travel convenience during late hours, assisting the livelihood of citizens to return to the round-the-clock lifestyle as well as their safe return home.
Source: Seoul, Metropolitan Government News 2022
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