Seoul Subway Resumes Operation Until 1 AM After 2 Years... Line 9, Uisinseol Line, and Sillim Line Prioritized

Extended Operation of Lines 2, 5-8 Starting Next Month on the 7th
Up to 240,000 Passengers Can Be Transported... Resumption of High-Demand Line 2 Expected to Enhance Citizen Convenience
Close Coordination Underway to Resume Lines 1, 3, and 4 by Early July

On the first day of the outdoor mask mandate being lifted, on the 2nd, citizens wearing masks are walking at Gwanghwamun Station in the Seoul subway./Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Late-night subway operations in Seoul will resume after two years.

According to Seoul City on the 29th, the city will promptly extend the operating hours of Line 9, the Ui-Sinseol Line, and the Sillim Line starting on the 30th, and from the 7th of next month, the Seoul Metro-operated lines 2 and 5 through 8 will also be extended to 25:00 (1 a.m.). Through this late-night subway operation, the total number of runs will increase by 161 to 3,788, enabling transportation for up to 240,000 passengers. In particular, Line 9, which has high travel demand, will be resumed first, followed by the exclusive Seoul Metro-operated sections such as Line 2 from the 7th of next month, which is expected to enhance convenience for citizens.

Especially, operating Lines 2 and 5 through 8, which have the highest boarding demand and circulate within Seoul, until 25:00 is expected to alleviate travel inconveniences for citizens. Based on 2019 data, the number of passengers using the subway between 24:00 and 25:00 was highest on Line 2 with 8,847 passengers, followed by Line 9 with 2,760 passengers. By day of the week, the number increased by 76%, from 18,400 passengers on Monday to 32,438 on Friday.

However, since the last train operation times vary by line and route, passengers must check the operating times carefully when using transfer lines. The updated timetables must be confirmed through each station, the official website, or the Tta app.

Meanwhile, for subway Lines 1, 3, and 4, which are jointly operated by Seoul Metro and Korail, close consultations are underway aiming to resume operations in early July. Since these sections operate multiple lines such as KTX, ITX, and the Seohae Line, coordinating the train diagrams requires considerable technical time. Efforts will be made to advance the resumption date to minimize confusion and inconvenience for passengers.

Baek Ho, Director of Urban Transportation at Seoul City, stated, “Since the social distancing measures were lifted on April 18, Seoul has taken extraordinary measures to resolve late-night travel inconveniences caused by taxi shortages, including lifting taxi restrictions, expanding late-night exclusive taxis, increasing owl bus operations, and extending bus last runs.” He added, “Now, with the final step of extending late-night subway operations, transportation operations will normalize, and late-night travel inconveniences for citizens are expected to be alleviated.”