Seoul Metro Releases 2024 Ridership Statistics
Jamsil Station Ranks First for Second Consecutive Year, Surpassing Gangnam Station
Significant Increases in Ridership at Nowon, Gimpo Airport, and Seongsu Stations
Seoul Subway transported 2.4 billion passengers over the past year, covering a distance equivalent to circling the Earth 1,049 times. Notably, Jamsil Station on Line 2 was recorded as the station with the highest number of passengers, surpassing Gangnam Station and securing first place for the second consecutive year. Reflecting the rising popularity of Seongsu-dong, Seongsu Station on Line 2 jumped dramatically from around 40th place seven years ago to 13th place.
Platform of Jamsil Station on Line 2, which recorded the highest number of boarding and alighting passengers last year. Provided by Seoul Metro.
Seoul Metro announced these details on the 19th in its '2024 Seoul Subway Lines 1-8 Transportation Statistics.' According to the statistics, the total number of passengers on Lines 1 through 8 increased by 2.5% from the previous year, reaching 2,417.52 million. This figure corresponds to about 30% of the global population.
May was the busiest month of the year, Fridays were the busiest days, and the peak hours were between 6 and 7 p.m. The average daily ridership was 6.6 million, recovering to 91% of the pre-COVID-19 pandemic level in 2019 (7.31 million).
8 out of the Top 10 Stations by Ridership Are on Line 2
The station with the highest number of passengers on the Seoul Subway was Jamsil Station on Line 2. An average of 156,177 passengers boarded and alighted daily, maintaining first place for the second consecutive year, ahead of Hongdaeipgu Station (150,369) and Gangnam Station (149,757).
Jamsil Station has a large-scale transfer center underground, which keeps passenger traffic active even on regular days. Additionally, the extension of the 8th Line’s Byeollae Line last year likely increased the influx of residents from Guri and Namyangju. The station also benefited from record-breaking attendance in professional baseball, which attracted an unprecedented number of passengers.
Gangnam Station held the undisputed first place for 26 years from 1997 to 2022 but was overtaken by Jamsil Station for the first time in 2023, dropping to second place and then falling to third place last year.
Among the top 10 stations, eight belong to Line 2, excluding Seoul Station and Express Bus Terminal Station, further proving the high usage rate of Line 2. Guro Digital Complex Station, Sillim Station, and Samseong Station each recorded over 100,000 daily passengers, placing them within the top 10.
Last year, Line 2 transported an average of 1,964,128 passengers daily, the highest among Seoul Subway Lines 1 through 8. This number exceeds the combined daily ridership of the five other subway operators nationwide outside Seoul (Gwangju, Daegu, Daejeon, Busan, and Incheon), which totals approximately 1.91 million.
The concourse of Seongsu Station on Line 2, where the number of passengers is rapidly increasing. Provided by Seoul Metro.
Sharp Increase in Ridership at Nowon, Gimpo Airport, and Seongsu Stations
The station with the largest increase in passengers last year was Nowon Station. Ridership at Nowon Station on Line 4 increased by 37%, and on Line 7 by 15% compared to the previous year. Gimpo Airport Station also saw a 28% increase in passengers due to the rise in international tourists. Seongsu Station became a 'hot place' with a 57% increase in passengers over seven years. Seongsu Station was only ranked 42nd in 2018 but entered the top 20 in 2021, rose to 15th in 2023, and climbed to 13th last year.
Seoul Metro plans to deploy congestion management personnel and continue improvements for passenger convenience to respond to the increasing number of users. Baekho, President of Seoul Metro, stated, "Although operating conditions have worsened due to an increase in fare evasion rates, we will improve subway operation patterns by introducing a tagless system, flexibly adjusting train operation times, and installing multifunctional subway kiosks."
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