[sustran] (Seoul, Korea) New traffic measures cause chaos

[Dharm Guruswamy]

      New traffic measures cause chaos 
      
     
      

           
      Seoul city introduced new traffic measures yesterday which left many people angry and late for work or school because of major congestion on roads caused by hiccups with pre-paid fare cards and changed bus routes. 
      Many grumbled at inconveniences caused by lack of information from the Seoul Metropolitan Government on the new measures: higher subway and bus fares, bus-only lanes, bus-route changes, colored buses and a revamped prepaid traffic card. 

      But while the majority of the city's more than 10 million residents may have suffered problems, some did get free rides on the subway in the morning and others did not have to pay bus fares. 

      And, many said they had trouble-free and quicker bus journeys because of the exclusive bus lanes. 

      The new T-money prepaid traffic card malfunctioned from around 7 a.m., angering many in a rush to get to work, school or other appointments. 

           
            NEW TRANSPORT SYSTEM IN SEOUL - Buses run on bus-only lanes in Seongsan-ro, western Seoul while cars and trucks are stuck in a traffic jam on the first day of the new mass transport system. [The Korea Herald] 

      The interruptions continued through the morning in many areas, but while the problem was being fixed the fare gates at subway stations were kept open so people could move in and out without paying. 

      The problem was caused by the omission of computer data on the new transportation program transmitted by the Korean Smart Card, the company which manages the T-money card, officials said. 

      Although the company and city government acted to bring the situation under control in about 1-1/2 hours, people who had problems said they find it hard to trust the cards. 

      "I reached the office late due to the problem with my card. I am angry about the city government for handling the transportation system so shabbily," office worker Chung Jae-yoon said. 

      The traffic card was not the only problem. People were confused by changes in bus routes and the color of buses. 

      The city government decided to repaint its local buses in four colors - red, yellow, blue and green - to symbolize routes and areas where they operate, and changed all local bus routes. 

      Many people unfamiliar with the new bus routes because of lack of information did not know what number color or bus to ride. 

      "As usual, I waited for the bus at the stop near my house in the morning. But I could not find the bus that I always ride to go to the office," said 27-year old company worker Kim Dong-hwan. "Finally, a volunteer at the bus stop came up to me and said I have to wait at a different place for the bus I need." 

      There were rare scenes at bus stops because of the confusion. Normally packed in the morning rush hour, many buses had no passengers as people stood around studying route guide maps with confused expressions on their faces. 

           
            Citizens read transit information yesterday, the first day of the new transportation system in Seoul. 

      Travelers who did not understand the routes were allowed to travel free on several bus routes, officials said. 

      The bus-only lanes did not work well for drivers of cars and other vehicles. 

      Although many bus drivers welcomed the new bus-only lanes, saying they could move more quickly because no other vehicles blocked them, car and taxi drivers wound up in big traffic jams. 

      "All areas in Seoul were extremely congested because car drivers cannot turn or move freely due to the bus lanes. Especially bad were traffic jams in southern Seoul and Mapo, western Seoul," police said. 

      The Bus Management System, a computer monitoring unit in each bus that assesses the traffic situation on a minute-to-minute basis, also played up. The BMS in some blue buses did not operate well and caused confusion among bus drivers and passengers alike. 

      Adding to the woes are higher fares for subways and buses. 

      The basic fare for a bus ride is now 800 won, compared to 650 won previously. Connections to satellite cities now range from 500 won to 1,400 won. 

      The subway fares are up according to distance traveled, and in some cases, can raise a person's daily subway costs by as much as 50 percent. 

      Many bus passengers, however, were pleased with the new traffic system, saying they had arrived at work or school early because of the bus-only lanes. 

      "Every day, I experience terrible traffic. But I was able to arrive at school well in time today because of the bus lane," graduate school student Nah Geum-shil said. 

      The Seoul government said it's too early to criticize the new traffic system. "We want citizens to wait for a while until the new transportation system settles down," the Metropolitan Government said. 

      (younhee at heraldm.com) 


      By O Youn-hee 




      2004.07.02
     
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/sustran-discuss/attachments/20040706/1e233115/attachment-0001.html
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/octet-stream
Size: 43 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/sustran-discuss/attachments/20040706/1e233115/attachment-0004.bin
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/octet-stream
Size: 21170 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/sustran-discuss/attachments/20040706/1e233115/attachment-0005.bin
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/octet-stream
Size: 31192 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/sustran-discuss/attachments/20040706/1e233115/attachment-0006.bin
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/octet-stream
Size: 26194 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/sustran-discuss/attachments/20040706/1e233115/attachment-0007.bin