"Too Many Standing Passengers, Can't Board"... Korail Blocking Wheelchairs, Finally Apologizes

Reserved Wheelchair Seat Booked but Not Used
"Extremely High Congestion at the Time... Apology Issued"

Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) has come under controversy after it was revealed that a passenger with a physical disability who had reserved a seat for an electric wheelchair was denied boarding. Facing strong public criticism, KORAIL issued an official apology.

On the 20th, KORAIL released a statement saying, "We apologize for the incident on the 15th at Suwon Station where a passenger using an electric wheelchair was unable to board the reserved train."

[Image source=Pixabay]

KORAIL explained, "At the time, the Mugunghwa train was composed of three cars and was carrying about 400 passengers, including 188 standing passengers, resulting in a very crowded situation. To ensure sufficient space for the safety of both electric wheelchair users and standing passengers, we guided the customer to board the next train arriving 14 minutes later, which was less crowded."

They added, "We apologize for not obtaining prior consent for boarding the subsequent train after assessing the train’s congestion level in advance to ensure safe travel, and we will strive to prevent recurrence."

Furthermore, they stated, "We will re-implement staff training to guarantee the mobility rights of transportation-vulnerable individuals and manage the process so that when a helper service is requested, the current train usage status is checked and passengers are informed in advance about which trains they can board."

KORAIL Denies Boarding to Disabled Passenger in Wheelchair

[Image source=Pixabay]

This incident came to light belatedly after a related column was published by 'Social Focus,' a media outlet founded by the Korea Disabled People's Association. The column, written by editorial writer Mr. Jo (59), detailed his experience of being denied boarding on a Mugunghwa train from Suwon to Seoul on the 15th, despite having reserved a wheelchair-only seat, due to the large number of standing passengers.

The train Mr. Jo intended to board had seats exclusively for electric wheelchair users, and he had reserved the wheelchair seat in car 3 of Mugunghwa train number 1282, departing at 11:38 a.m. that day.

After completing a lift usage request with customer support, he headed to the platform to board the train, but the station staff denied his boarding citing the large number of standing passengers on the train. Ultimately, Mr. Jo had to personally check the next train schedule and request boarding.

As this information spread on social media and other platforms, online criticism of KORAIL surged. Netizens responded with comments such as, "Everyone should remember that anyone can become disabled," "It’s unreasonable to be unable to board despite having properly reserved a seat," and "The attitude toward disabled people reflects the level of a country."

KORAIL plans to minimize train congestion by guiding standing passengers to disperse and intends to flexibly adjust the standing ticket sales ratio on Mugunghwa trains during peak hours and weekends when passenger volume is high.

President Yoon Suk-yeol: "We Will Work Harder to Ensure Fair Opportunities for People with Disabilities"

Meanwhile, on the 20th, marking Disability Day, President Yoon Suk-yeol stated, "We will work harder to create a society where people with disabilities have fair opportunities comparable to those without disabilities."

Through Facebook, President Yoon said, "We will faithfully implement customized support and continue to communicate with the field to make ongoing improvements."

The day before, President Yoon also commented on a video from the disability-related YouTube channel 'We Miracle.' He said, "We will do our best to create a society that embraces everyone with a generous heart," and "We will significantly strengthen care services to ensure that people with disabilities do not face inconvenience." This was the first time President Yoon commented on another channel using his YouTube channel ID.