Seoul Metro Runs Last Trains to Prevent Accidents Like Falls or Door Entrapments in Line with Serious Accident Punishment Act Enforcement
[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Seoul Metro Corporation (President Kim Sang-beom) is making 'small' changes to prevent safety accidents that may occur due to minor mistakes, errors, or excessive actions by passengers, in accordance with the 'Serious Accidents Punishment Act' (hereinafter referred to as the Serious Accidents Act) which will be fully enforced from the 27th.
To reduce passenger inconvenience and ensure safety at the end of subway operations, a system that allows station staff to block ticket recognition at the station gates and restrict access to platforms with a simple operation has been applied to all stations on Lines 1 to 8 starting from the 25th of this month.
Previously, station staff stood directly at the gates during the time when train operations ended to guide passengers, but there were many cases where passengers attempted to board trains recklessly by jumping over the gates.
During this process, several incidents and accidents occurred, such as passengers falling and getting injured or verbally and physically assaulting staff who informed them that operations had ended.
On May 22 last year, around 11:30 PM at Seolleung Station on Line 2, a foreigner in his 40s, Mr. A, ran recklessly to catch the last train and slipped on the stairs. Mr. A suffered a torn skin near his ear and bled heavily, expressing pain. Staff who received the report immediately responded with first aid and transferred him to 119 emergency services.
The new system allows station staff to remotely close all gates with a simple operation, and even if a ticket is touched to the gate reader, the fare is not processed. Instead, a message saying "All train operations have ended" is displayed on the LCD screen and announced via voice. The purpose is to prevent passengers' mistakes or reckless boarding after train operations have ended.
The subway door closing alarm sound will also be changed to a more easily recognizable tone. This is to enhance passengers' awareness and more effectively prevent door entrapment accidents.
Until now, a simple melody alarm was played first, followed by a voice announcement saying, "The safety door is closing, please step back one step." After the change, the voice "The safety door is closing" will be followed by a short warning sound similar to a horn.
The changed alarm sound was pilot tested at 20 stations including Seongsu Branch Line (Seongsu~Sinseol-dong) on Line 2 and Jamsil on Line 8 in mid-November last year, and has been expanded to all stations on Lines 1 to 8 from mid-January to the end of April.
Most door entrapment accidents occurred because passengers were distracted by smartphones or other devices and failed to notice the doors closing, or recklessly rushed toward the closing doors. More than 100 such incidents occur annually, making it one of the main factors threatening subway safety due to its high frequency.
Both the gate passage restriction system after train operations end and the door alarm sound improvement were developed and implemented independently by the corporation, resulting in a cost saving of 1.76 billion KRW in total (160 million KRW for the gate system and 1.6 billion KRW for the door alarm improvement).
Park Byung-seop, Director of the Safety Guidance Department, said, "Although these changes may seem minor, we intend to improve every aspect that subway users can directly feel," and added, "We will continue to faithfully make every effort to ensure safe subway use."
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