Providing Public Transportation Convenience for Early Morning Workers
Seoul City announced on the 21st that it will introduce the 'Autonomous Dawn Companion Bus' in the second half of this year to assist early morning workers with public transportation convenience.
The Autonomous Dawn Companion Bus is scheduled for official operation by the end of this year. It is a new public transportation service that combines the city's autonomous driving achievements with high-level bus service policies such as dispatch and route management.
Earlier, on the 4th of last month, the city launched the world's first 'Late-night Autonomous Bus.' This bus operates on the Hapjeong Station to Dongdaemun Station route, which has high late-night traffic, providing transportation convenience.
The city emphasized that the Autonomous Dawn Companion Bus was planned to allow all citizens, including marginalized groups, to experience leading public transportation innovation in line with Mayor Oh Se-hoon's transportation policy for the vulnerable, which focuses on improving public transportation convenience for ordinary people.
The Dawn Companion Bus is expected to operate around 3:30 a.m., earlier than the official first city bus service time (3:50 a.m. to 4:00 a.m.). This approximately 30-minute earlier first bus is expected to help alleviate inconveniences for early morning commuters.
The operation routes will be selected focusing on areas with severe first-bus congestion and high safety for autonomous bus operation. The first route is expected to be Bus No. 160, which runs the Dobongsan Station?Jongno?Mapo Station?Yeouido Station?Yeongdeungpo Station section (25.7 km one way). The No. 160 route experiences severe congestion among early morning buses, with the maximum number of passengers on the first bus exceeding 50. Route safety and autonomous vehicle operation conditions were also considered.
The city plans to establish essential infrastructure such as opening traffic signals and complete the designation of autonomous vehicle pilot operation zones in consultation with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport by July, after which passenger boarding will begin.
Subsequently, the operation will expand to other early morning congested routes such as Nos. 146 and 148 (Sanggye?Gangnam/Seocho), and gradually, autonomous buses will be deployed on congested routes in connection with the commercialization of autonomous driving.
Yoon Jong-jang, Director of the Seoul City Urban Transportation Office, stated, "As we empathize with the hardships of ordinary people who open the city's dawn first, we will continue to implement transportation policies that accompany the vulnerable this year." He added, "We will consolidate the city's excellent policy know-how to innovatively improve the daily convenience of socially disadvantaged groups."
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