Gimhae City Installs 'Smart Library' at Gimhae City Hall Station on the Light Rail Transit

Smart library device installed at Gimhae City Hall Station on the Gyeongjeon Light Rail Transit in Gimhae, Gyeongnam. [Image source=Gimhae City]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Sang-hyun] Gimhae City, Gyeongnam Province, has installed a smart library at the Gimhae City Hall Station of the light rail, where books can be borrowed and returned unmanned, and has started a three-week pilot operation.

According to the city on the 18th, this smart library was selected through the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's 'U-Library Construction Support' contest, receiving 65 million KRW in national funding out of a total project cost of 130 million KRW. After an agreement with Busan-Gimhae Light Rail Transit, the space inside Gimhae City Hall Station was leased free of charge for installation.

The city stocked about 500 books owned by Jangyu Library, allowing any Gimhae citizen to borrow up to two books per person for 14 days free of charge, 365 days a year without holidays.

Mayor Heo Seong-gon said, "We will continue to expand non-face-to-face library services to provide citizens with an environment conducive to reading."

Meanwhile, the smart library is an unmanned book lending and return machine that allows users who find it difficult to visit libraries to conveniently select, borrow, and return books immediately at the device installation site.