Seoul Metro System; focused on Safety and Service improvement

摘要

The subway system of Seoul has made a tremendous growth, establishing itself as the most important mode of public transportation in the city. Launched in 1974 with a single line of 7.8 kilometers in operational distance and 9 stations, the system has expanded to comprise 8 lines with 286.9 kilometers in operational distance and 264 stations. The number of passengers has increased 33 times, to a daily average of 7.179 million. The subway system has always strived to provide fast, efficient, and convenient transit over the years. After the fire incidents on line 1 of Daegu's subway system and on line 7 in Seoul, we acutely felt the need to reinforce our safety facilities and update our amenities, and an extensive improvement was consequently made. We have redone the interiors of our rolling stock in inflammable material, devised a comprehensive plan for smoke control and escape, and installed a state-of-the-art surveillance and communication system. We have also reinforced the emergency power control system and started installing PSDs in numerous stations to prevent falls and other accidents. Acknowledging the improved standards of living in Korea, we have been striving to meet the needs of our customers, to provide them with better service and environment. Elevators, escalators and moving walks have been thoroughly renovated, and the air-conditioning systems inside stations and trains have been updated. At the same time, PSD, concrete track-bed, and state-of-the-art cleaning equipments have been installed to reduce the amount of airborne debris. We have also developed a better kind of rail surface treatment, in order to reduce noise and vibration of vehicles. With the help of the rapidly advancing IT industry, we installed an electric ticket system of MS or RF type. Many of these improvements, in fact, had been included in the original construction plans of our lines, but we could not execute them back then, primarily for the lack of funding and time. We are happy to see these improvements finally made today, and we believe that our current experience will provide valuable guidance for building new lines and renovating existing ones.