Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on the 6th checked the preparations for introducing a wireless communication–based train control system (CBTC) to ease subway crowding.
That morning, Oh visited Seoul Metro's second control center in Yongdap-dong, Seongdong District, and the construction site of the integrated control center.
Oh's on-site inspection that day was to review the progress of the Urban Rail Congestion Improvement Innovation Plan released by the Seoul city government in Mar.
Earlier, the city released a plan to run more trains by reducing the safe distance between trains using a signaling system in which trains and ground facilities communicate wirelessly in real time. It expected this to lower subway congestion by 20%. The goal is to first apply it to the Ui-Shinseol Line in 2032.
At the second control center, Oh received a briefing from the general control director on the center's operations and the expected congestion reduction effect from introducing CBTC. He then moved by vehicle and confirmed the construction progress and other details from the chief technology officer at the nearby integrated control center construction site.
The integrated control center construction site that Oh visited is a key site for the project to build the Intelligent SMART Integrated Control Center for Lines 1–9, which will combine three currently separate control centers into one. A total project cost of 311 billion won will be invested to create a facility with two underground floors and six above-ground floors. After completion, operations of all Lines 1–9 will be centrally controlled from a single center.
"An advanced, technology-based urban rail operating environment is an essential condition to protect the daily lives of citizens," Oh said. "We will continue to make improvements so that they lead to changes citizens can feel."