Gangdong-gu Office Anticipates Reduced Congestion with Increased Service Frequency of Subway Line 5 During Rush Hour

- Starting from April 3^rd, train frequency to be increased by two runs during the morning and evening rush hours

- Expected improvements in congestion and convenience of using Subway Line 5 in the Gangdong-gu area

Gangdong-gu Office (Head: Lee Soo-hee) announced on the 24^th that it will increase the service frequency of Subway Line 5 during the morning and evening rush hours by a total of four runs—two runs each—starting from April 3^rd.

Subway Line 5 runs from Banghwa to Hanam Geomdansan and Macheon. With this decision, the service frequency will be increased by a total of four runs, two during the morning rush (from Sangil-dong to Banghwa), and two during the evening rush (from Banghwa to Hanam Geomdansan; from Banghwa to Macheon), starting from April 3^rd. In the morning rush hour, two of the four shuttle trains from Sangil-dong to Gangdong will depart from Hanam Geomdansan.

Although Gangdong-gu's large-scale reconstruction and land development, as well as the development of business districts, have led to a constant increase in population and transportation demand, the structural problem of Subway Line 5—which runs in two directions from Gangdong to Hanam Geomdansan and Macheon—has been causing inconvenience to local residents due to long intervals between trains.

In particular, due to the extension of Line 5 (Hanam Line), the number of trains departing from Sangil-dong to Banghwa during the morning rush hour has continuously decreased (7 times in 2021 → 3 times in 2022), and the inconvenience to residents in the Gangdong-gu section has become severe due to the rapid increase in congestion caused by the additional demand for transportation due to the extension.

Gangdong-gu has continuously demanded the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Seoul Metro, the relevant agencies, to increase the number of trains, reduce the interval between trains, and restore the operation frequency of Sangil-dong-bound trains to improve the rider conditions for using Subway Line 5 and alleviate the inconvenience of residents. After the Itaewon crowd crush disaster, Gangdong-gu Office conducted a congestion survey on Subway Line 5 in the Gangdong-gu section and notified the results to the relevant agencies, demanding the establishment of measures to improve congestion.

A continuous increase in transportation demand in the Gangdong-gu area, including the construction of Godeok Gangil New Town and Godeok Business Valley, is also anticipated. Accordingly, the district announced plans to continuously consult and demand relevant agencies to improve the conditions for using public transportation for residents, such as increasing the number of trains, reducing the interval between trains, and adjusting the ratio of trains for the Hanam Geomdansan and Macheon directions.

Lee Soo-hee, the head of Gangdong-gu, expressed her hope that the inconvenience of residents during commuting hours could be slightly improved by this increase in Subway Line 5 service, and stated that "we will make active efforts in cooperation with relevant agencies such as the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to ensure the smooth implementation of subway and regional railway projects, such as the GTX-D project, direct connection of Line 5, and the prompt implementation of the fourth phase of the Line 9 project, for the improvement of the district's public transportation environment."

Gangdong-gu Office