[Subway System] |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_lefttop.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_righttop.gif) |
|
![Cheongwadae, Office of the President, Republic of Korea](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub5_03_img10.gif) Seoul's subway system is the largest in the country and transports about 5.5 million passengers a day. It first went into service in 1974 with the opening of Line 1 and now consists of 8 lines extending nearly 287 kilometers with stops at 263 stations providing links between almost all destination points in the metropolitan Seoul area. Subway service is also available in 4 other cities: Busan, Daegu, Incheon and Gwangju. Two lines in operation in Busan, which first began subway service in 1985, span 70.5 kilometers in length with 73 stops in major downtown and suburban locations and carries over 722,000 people a day. Daegu's Line 1, opened in 1997, runs 25.9 kilometers through 30 stations. Incheon commenced subway service in October 1999 and now links 22 stations travelling through 21.9 kilometers. Gwangju subway began service in April 2004, operating 12.1 kilometers with 14 stops. Still under construction are Phase 3 of Line 2 and Line 3 in Busan, Line 2 in Daegu, Lines 2 and 3 in Incheon, Phase 3 of Line 1 in Gwangju and new subways in Daejeon. Subways systems in Korea feature the most up-to-date facilities and are fast becoming the most preferred mode of mass transportation for its convenience. |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_leftbottom.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_rightbottom.gif) | |
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Ftop.gif) |
[Railway] |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_lefttop.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_righttop.gif) |
|
As of 2002, the railway system of Korea encompassed 64 routes spanning 3,129 operational kilometers. The railway plays an important role in inter-city passenger and freight transport. The Korean National Railroad (KNR) possesses 2,850 locomotives and 18,559 rail cars in all of which 1,596 are passenger cars and 14,113 are freight cars. The express train, Saemaeul, travels the distance of 444 kilometers between Seoul and Busan in about 4 hours.
For railway traffic safety and efficiency, KNR operates the Centralized Traffic Control System (CTC), which regulates Seoul suburban lines and the Gyeongbu, Jungang, Taebaek, and Yeongdong lines covering 1,321 kilometers. All these lines are equipped with an automatic train stop system to help prevent accidents.
Korea Train Express or KTX began its service on April 1, 2004 making it as the world's fifth bullet train after Japan, France, Germany, and Spain. It connects Korea's capital to major cities in the country, from Seoul to the southeastern port city of Busan and the southwestern city of Mokpo. It shortens travel time from Seoul to Busan to 2 hours and 40 minutes from 4 hours and 10 minutes; and from Seoul to Mokpo to 3 hours from 4 hours and 40 minutes. Phase 2 will see the completion of a new high-speed line from Daegu to Busan in 2010, where the travel time will be less than 2 hours. It is expected to ease current traffic congestion on highways and offer greater convenience to the public. |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_leftbottom.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_rightbottom.gif) | |
|
[Automobiles] |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_lefttop.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_righttop.gif) |
|
Motor vehicle registration in Korea increased dramatically from 527,729 in 1980 to 13,949,440 in 2002 due to steady rise in income and living standards, expansion of suburbs, and development of the car manufacturing industry. This is an average annual increase of about 19 percent. In particular, passenger cars saw the largest increase jumping from 249,102 to 9,737,428, more than 38 times. The number of other vehicles registered as of 2002 are 1,275,319 passenger/cargo combined cars, 2,894,412 trucks, and 42,281 special vehicles. This fiqures increased to 11,526,035 passenger/cargo combined cars, 3,016,461 trucks, and 44,837 special vehicles in 2003. |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_leftbottom.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_rightbottom.gif) | |
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Ftop.gif) |
[Buses and Taxis] |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_lefttop.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_righttop.gif) |
|
Mainly there are 3 types of buses-urban, airport limousine, and express in Korea servicing routes throughout metropolitan areas and beyond. In Seoul, for example, urban (or intra-city) buses run on major corridors of the city, airport limousine buses run to and from the Incheon International Airport and urban centers and other suburbs in the metropolitan area, and express buses operate between all principal cities in the country providing linkages outside of Seoul.
Taxis play a vital role in meeting transportation needs in large cities and are divided into 2 types; regular and deluxe taxis. Deluxe taxis charge higher fares and aim to provide better services. All deluxe taxis and many regular taxis offer free interpretation service in English, Japanese and Chinese through mobile phone connection for the convenience of foreign visitors with language barriers.
As in many other industrializing nations, cities in Korea face problems such as traffic congestion and limited parking spaces. In order to alleviate these problems, the government introduced measures such as bus-only lanes and transport cards to improve bus transportation service so as to encourage more commuters to leave their cars at home.
Various Transportation Demand Management (TDM) measures have also been implemented to effectively manage passenger car traffic. Such measures include congestion toll at Namsan Tunnels, discount on Traffic Impact Fees for employers adopting programs, e.g. car-pooling, to help reduce traffic volume, and flexible pricing for parking which allows higher parking fees in congested areas. |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_leftbottom.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_rightbottom.gif) | |
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Ftop.gif) |
[Expressways] |
|
|
|
[International and Domestic Air Transport] |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_lefttop.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_righttop.gif) |
|
![Cheongwadae, Office of the President, Republic of Korea](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub5_03_img12.gif) Korea has air service agreements with 81 countries and major international airlines now offer over 1,400 scheduled direct or non-stop flights per week from Korea to major cities in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. In 1969, when the government owned and run Korean Air Lines (KAL) was privatized, KAL had only two jet aircraft. Today, the entire fleet of Korean Air (the former KAL) and Asiana Airlines exceeds 180 passenger and cargo aircraft and the number continues to grow. Internationally, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines serve 87 cities around the world ranking 4th in the world in annual cargo handling capacity and 11th in passenger transport. Domestically, the two airlines serve 15 cities: Seoul, Busan, Jeju, Daegu, Gwangju, Jinju, Wonju, Cheongju, Yeosu, Ulsan, Mokpo, Gunsan, Yangyang, Yecheon, and Pohang. The two carriers transported more than 20 million people to these destinations in 2001. Incheon International Airport, opened in March 2001, is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and provides advanced traffic networks for its customers. The new airport, optimally located geographically, is being fostered to become the leading hub airport in Northeast Asia to further boost Korea's growth into a major center of logistics. Plans for the airport include a Free Trade Zone, International Business District, and Special Economic Zone. |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_leftbottom.gif) |
|
![](https://img1.daumcdn.net/relay/cafe/original/?fname=http%3A%2F%2Fenglish.president.go.kr%2Fcwd%2Fen%2Fimages%2Fsub_t_rightbottom.gif) | |
|
[Maritime Transportation] |
|
|