Seoul City to Add 8,000 Robust and Convenient 'QR-type New Ddareungi' Bikes Within the Year

Development of Load-Bearing Seat Frame... Lock Lever Changed to Green
Launch of 'Ddarungi Disinfection Team' to Strengthen COVID-19 Prevention Measures

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 5th that it will additionally introduce 8,000 units of the 'QR-type New Ddareungi' with a more reinforced frame by the end of December for the safety and convenience of citizens. They plan to operate 23,000 units of the simplified QR-type New Ddareungi by the end of this year and replace all bicycles with QR-type New Ddareungi by 2022.

First, the city reinforced the frame of the existing Ddareungi, which has a 24-inch L-shaped bicycle structure. The existing Ddareungi had a structure where the load was concentrated on the frame under the seat, causing fatigue to accumulate continuously and sometimes resulting in frame breakage.

The QR terminals introduced in March this year allow easy returns by pulling the lock lever at any Ddareungi rental station throughout Seoul. To improve visibility at night and provide convenient return instructions, the lock lever was changed from the initially introduced black color to green, the symbolic color of Ddareungi, enhancing visibility and convenience.

The city also finalized the name of the 20-inch small-sized Ddareungi, which has reduced size and weight, as 'Saessak Ddareungi' (Sprout Ddareungi), and plans to sequentially introduce 2,000 units starting from the end of November when the general Ddareungi introduction is completed. After pilot operations in districts such as Songpa-gu and Gangdong-gu, where the ratio of bicycle road length to road extension length is high, the city will consider expanding the operation areas in the future.

Additionally, to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Seoul regularly disinfects all Ddareungi rental stations and provides two hand sanitizers at each station. All Ddareungi handlebars and terminal screens deployed throughout Seoul are also disinfected on-site with eco-friendly spray-type sterilizers.

Since August, a total of 140 Ddareungi disinfection teams have been formed to secure public jobs for vulnerable employment groups. They thoroughly operate the disinfection system by frequently disinfecting surfaces of rental stations and bicycles and checking and replacing hand sanitizer supplies.

Hwang Bo-yeon, Director of Urban Transportation at Seoul City, said, "In response to citizens' demand for safe transportation amid COVID-19 concerns, we expect that the more robust and convenient QR-type New Ddareungi and the Saessak Ddareungi for various age groups will make usage more convenient." He added, "We ask citizens to safely use bicycles by following personal hygiene rules and etiquette to practice social distancing."

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