Gwangjin-gu, Seoul's First to Install 'Bus Stop Cooling and Heating Seats'

Trial Operation Begins with Installation of 8 Heated and Cooled Chairs at Bus Stops Near Gangbyeon Station

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Gwangjin-gu (Mayor Kim Seon-gap) has become the first autonomous district in Seoul to install chairs with both cooling and heating functions simultaneously at a bus stop near Gangbyeon Station and has begun a pilot operation.

The cooling and heating chairs were installed to allow residents to comfortably use public transportation by avoiding the cold and heat at bus stops exposed to the road, in preparation for the cold waves in winter and heat waves in summer.

The district first installed eight chairs on a trial basis at the Gangbyeon Station D bus stop located in front of the district park, where there are many elderly, disabled, and high pedestrian traffic.

The newly installed cooling and heating chairs contain a high-efficiency carbon material heating element that can generate heat up to 54°C with a small amount of electricity in winter, and in summer, the surface temperature can be lowered to as low as 18°C.

All of this is automatically controlled by an automatic temperature controller according to the outdoor temperature.

The cooling and heating chairs operate from November to March in winter and from June to September in summer, and to minimize unnecessary power consumption, they operate from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. according to bus operation hours.

Kim Seon-gap, Mayor of Gwangjin-gu, said, “We aim to provide differentiated convenience for residents’ transportation through facilities upgraded not only with heating but also cooling functions,” adding, “If the residents respond well, we will gradually expand the installation so that more residents can use them.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.