[Exclusive] Seoul subway, riding without tags… Full implementation from next year

Reporters Jang Jin-bok and Park Jae-hong Posted 2024-03-17 17:12 Updated 2024-03-17 17:12 Font size adjusted

World's first introduction of base station location information

Helps improve transportation convenience and congestion

Starting from the second half of next year, passengers riding the Seoul subway are expected to be able to pass through the turnstiles without swiping a transportation card. Seoul Transportation Corporation is developing its own non-contact payment (tagless) payment system. This is the first time in the world that it is being fully introduced in a large city like Seoul.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Corporation on the 17th, Tagless is a system that automatically pays fares when using public transportation without having to swipe a transportation card. It is similar to a car with a high pass running on a highway without stopping at a toll gate. Currently, the tagless system is being piloted in some sections of the light rail and subway, such as the Uisinseol Line and Juan and Jakjeon Stations of the Incheon Subway. The systems introduced so far are those that receive signals such as mobile T-money via Bluetooth (BLE). The corporation explains that this method can only be used in limited areas or routes.

On the other hand, the system that the corporation is developing in-house is different in that it adds mobile carrier's base station movement path positioning technology to the existing Bluetooth method. A construction official explained, “By linking with the location information of telecommunication company base stations, we can obtain actual travel route information such as passengers’ boarding and disembarkation, transfers, and intermediate route changes to increase accuracy,” adding, “This is the world’s first attempt.”

As the first step in building the system, the corporation is currently conducting demonstration work on short-range wireless communication technology. Approximately 17,000 people, including construction employees, board and disembark at the demonstration station through an application with a tagless function and analyze data processing speed and accuracy. Verifiable stations include Yongdap Station on Line 2, Oksu Station on Line 3, Sadang Station on Line 4, and Dapsimni Station on Line 5.

 

On the afternoon of October 16th last year, a train was entering a subway platform in downtown Seoul.

 

Starting in the second half of this year, we will enter the second phase of demonstrating location location technology linked to telecommunication company base stations. The goal is to implement the third phase of Seoul subway lines 1 to 8 and the fourth phase of expansion of public transportation in the metropolitan area next year. A construction official emphasized, “After a testing period, we will consider whether to expand the subway system next year. Ultimately, the plan is to expand the scope to include public transportation systems such as buses and subways in the metropolitan area.”

From the perspective of passengers using the subway, the convenience of using public transportation will improve when tagless is introduced. If you turn on the transportation app that the corporation will release in the future and pass through the tagless ticket gate, automatic payment will be made. Accordingly, passengers with infants, carrying heavy luggage in both hands, or passengers in wheelchairs do not have to stop and take out a transportation card or smartphone.

It is analyzed that waiting time for boarding and disembarking and congestion during rush hour when passengers are crowded will also be reduced. The corporation believes that 0.5 seconds per person can be saved when passing through the turnstile using tagless. Assuming that there were 581,648,623 mobile users among those who got off the subway in Seoul last year, a total of 80,785 hours could be saved.

 

Orignial source : [단독]서울지하철, 태그 없이 탄다…내년부터 전면 시행 | 서울신문 (seoul.co.kr)