The Daegok Sosa Line will open...The number of passengers on their way to work at Gimpo Airport increased by more than 20%

After the opening of the Daegok-Sosa section of the Seohae Line (Daegok-Sosa Line), the number of passengers at Gimpo Airport Station, a transfer station, increased by more than 20% on the 4th.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Wednesday, 17,465 passengers passed the gate to use Gimpo Airport Line 9 and the airport railroad during peak hours (7 a.m. to 9 a.m. to work), up 20.8 percent from last week (14,460). Line 9 and the airport railroad are not separated by separate gates.

The number of people came to work on Saturday, the first weekday after the opening of the train, to 18,215 people, a 26.1 percent increase from the previous Monday (14,442). In the case of Line 5, the number of people getting on and off at that time increased by 826, or 3.6 percent, to 2,326 people. The level of congestion in the Line 9 train also increased slightly. The level of congestion in the train is calculated as 100 percent when 922 people are on board the six-car train.

The congestion level of express trains, which was measured for 30 minutes from 8 a.m. on Thursday, increased from 92 percent at Gimpo Airport Station and 137 percent at Gayang Station to 193 percent at Noryangjin Station and 192 percent at Dongjak Station. This is an increase of 8, 1, 3, and 4 percent points, respectively, compared to the average for the month of June before the opening of the Daegok Sosa Line. The congestion level of regular trains at the same time was 50 percent, 82 percent, 133 percent and 139 percent. Compared to before the opening of the train service, the number increased by 6, 4, 11, and 8 percent points.

The figure is lower than the city's original forecast. The city released a report on April 22 and predicted that if the number of transfer passengers, which has increased since the opening of the Daegok Sosa Line, uses Line 9, the number of passengers will increase by 6,158 (40.9 percent) to 21,227, which is about 15,069 (average number of weekday peak hours during May). The congestion level of express trains is expected to increase by 22 percentage points from a maximum of 197 percent to 219 percent.

The Daegok Sosa Line, which opened on the 1st of this month, runs a total of 18.35km from Bucheon Sosa Station to Bucheon Sports Complex, Wonjong to Gimpo Airport, Neunggok to Goyang Daegok Station. The opening of this section will shorten the travel time from Daegok to Sosa from 70 minutes to 20 minutes, and it will be possible to travel from Bucheon Sosa to Gimpo Airport, which took more than 50 minutes by other means of transportation, in 10 minutes.

However, Gimpo Airport Station, the main transfer station of the Daegok Sosa Line, will attract five lines, including Seoul Subway Lines 5 and 9, Gimpo Gold Line, and Airport Railroad. As a result, there were concerns that the number of passengers at Gimpo Airport Station and, especially, express trains on Line 9 would increase significantly. The city is implementing measures to ease congestion on Line 9 in line with the opening of the Daegok-Sosa Line.

Considering that trains operate at the maximum level during rush hour and regular trains are less congested than express trains, the city is encouraging citizens not to overboard. From March 31, the city will operate four more trains during rush hour. To this end, the city government is taking administrative steps, including changing train operation plans and reporting changes to the railway safety management system.

Date: 2023-07-04

Reporter: 서화목