Seoul, Korea--Following a series of
tests on more than 2,700 entry terminals located at 296 subway stations in the Seoul
metropolitan area, the city government has announced that passengers will henceforth be
able to use their bus fare cards to enter the subway system.
The terminals will automatically deduct subway fares from
the prepaid cards, which previously could be used only on city buses. About 8.7 million of
the bus cards are currently in circulation in Seoul, and users can recharge their cards at
about 3,200 locations across the city. The fleet numbers some 8,000 buses.
The city also plans to expand the use of bus cards to
cover fares for "neighborhood buses," which generally run feeder services on
relatively short routes in residential areas near subway stations. This service is slated
to begin in August.
The city's subway system, which is still being extended to
reach its programmed length of 234 kilometers, carries about 40 percent of the modal split
at present, or more than three million daily passengers.
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