Seoul Donghaeng Bus, First Operation Tomorrow... Serving Hwaseong Dongtan and Gimpo Pungmu

Future Plans for Discovering New Demand Sources

Seoul City announced on the 20th that the "Seoul Companion Bus," introduced to assist residents of the metropolitan area with their commute to Seoul, has completed all preparations and will begin operation starting tomorrow.

The Seoul Companion Bus, launched for the first time by the city, was planned to simultaneously address the commuting difficulties of metropolitan residents and traffic congestion issues.

The inaugural "Seoul Companion Bus" will prioritize areas with a high population commuting to Seoul and regions requiring bus routes connecting to other means of transportation such as the subway. It will first operate in Dongtan, Hwaseong City, and Pungmu-dong, Gimpo City. On the 17th, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Gimpo Mayor Kim Byung-soo jointly completed a pilot operation of Seoul Route 02, smoothly concluding the preparation process.

The Seoul Route 01 departs from Dongtan 2 New Town in Hwaseong City and stops at Gangnam Station. The route was optimized by reversing the direction previously used to enter Gangnam-daero from Banpo IC on the Gyeongbu Expressway, improving efficiency. Seoul Route 02 operates from Homeplus in Pungmu-dong, Gimpo City, to Gimpo Airport Station, helping to alleviate congestion on the Gimpo Gold Line.

Meanwhile, the Seoul Companion Bus will operate based on principles such as ▲areas with high demand for metropolitan buses ▲transportation-disadvantaged areas lacking subway access ▲temporary routes rather than fixed ones. After the initial service launch, monitoring will be conducted to identify other areas in need of the Seoul Companion Bus, supporting the commute of metropolitan residents. Additionally, active public promotion will be carried out through bus wrapping designs highlighting the key phrase, "Your commute, Seoul is here to serve."

Yoon Jong-jang, Director of Urban Transportation at Seoul City, stated, “We will concentrate all of Seoul’s policy expertise to actively implement transportation administration so that metropolitan residents facing tough mornings near Seoul can commute faster and more conveniently. Based on the results of operating the two routes, we will focus on discovering new demand areas and managing the Seoul Companion Bus service.”