SR and Gyeonggi Railroad Sector Ranked No.1...Improvement in Convenience, Safety, and Railroad Service Quality

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Announces '2020 Railway Service Quality Evaluation' Results
Overall Railway Service Scores Increased Compared to Previous Years
Improvements Needed in Cleanliness (Air Quality, Restrooms) and Convenience (Wi-Fi Quality)

Passenger / Freight Sector Railway Service Quality Evaluation Score Trends / Provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo Gang-wook] SR and Gyeonggi Railroad ranked first in service quality in the high-speed and metropolitan sectors, respectively.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 21st that the results of the railway service quality evaluation based on last year showed this outcome. The railway service quality evaluation is conducted biennially by the Ministry targeting railway operators such as Korail, SR, Shinbundang Line, Gyeonggi Railroad, Seobu Metropolitan Railroad, and Airport Railroad, in accordance with the Railway Business Act, to improve convenience in using railway facilities, train punctuality, ticketing convenience, and operational safety.

The overall railway service score increased compared to previous years. In the passenger sector, convenience in using railway facilities and operational safety were particularly highly rated, scoring 88.5 points, up 1.8 points from the previous evaluation (86.7 points). In the freight sector, due to an increase in temporary train supply, the score rose by 1.1 points to 89.1 from the previous 88.0 points.

In the high-speed sector, SRT passengers’ satisfaction and service quality were highly evaluated in terms of train comfort, cleanliness, and ride quality. The metropolitan sector’s service quality was generally excellent across all six companies. In particular, Gyeonggi Railroad (Shinbundang Line Migeum~Gwanggyo) received the highest evaluation score, influenced by low train congestion.

Additionally, in the general railway sector operated by Korail (Saemaeul, Mugunghwa, etc.), the service scores were highest on the Jungang Line, which had the highest train punctuality rate in the order of Jungang (87.2) > Jeolla (86.4) > Janghang (83.3) > Honam (82.4) > Gyeongbu (82.1) > Chungbuk (80.5).

Railway users’ satisfaction was highly rated in transportation-related services such as boarding and alighting convenience and safety. Especially, services operated in line with the trend of preferring mobile and contactless services, such as ‘mobile crew call,’ ‘mobile travel change,’ and ‘chatbot service,’ received favorable evaluations.

On the other hand, cleanliness (air quality, restrooms) and convenience (Wi-Fi quality) were identified as services needing some improvement.

The evaluation results were approved on the same day after deliberation by the Railway Industry Committee (Chairman: Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport). The Ministry plans to widely disseminate excellent service cases and recommend improvements to each railway operator for services that need enhancement. The quality evaluation was commissioned to the Korea Productivity Center (KPC), a specialized institution for productivity improvement consulting in the public sector, for investigation and implementation.

Oh Soo-young, Director of Railway Operations at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "To increase the role of railways as an eco-friendly and safe transportation means, we will support railway operators to continuously discover and expand better services."