'On the Way to the Suneung Exam Site' Seoul City Extends Subway Concentrated Dispatch by 2 Hours... 28 Additional Runs

Minimizing Bus Dispatch Intervals for Concentrated Dispatch, Taxi Restrictions Lifted from 4 AM to Noon to Support Mobility
Free Emergency Transport Vehicles Operated... 760 Units on Standby Near Exam Sites, Subway Stations, and Bus Stops

On the 14th, four days before the College Scholastic Ability Test, a message of support for examinees was hung at Jogyesa Temple in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 18th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government prepared special transportation measures to facilitate the commute of examinees on the day of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), including increased subway operations during school commute hours, minimizing bus intervals, lifting taxi restrictions, and supporting emergency transport vehicles.

According to Seoul City on the 15th, the subway morning peak dispatch hours will be extended by two hours from the usual 7-9 a.m. to 6-10 a.m., with 28 additional subway runs during the extended hours. This measure aims to assist examinees who commute early and office workers who adjust their work hours to arrive later than usual.

City buses and village buses will also operate at minimum intervals from 6 to 8:10 a.m., and taxi restrictions will be lifted from 4 a.m. to noon, allowing an additional 17,745 taxis to operate. Since this is a temporary lifting of restrictions to increase transport capacity for examinees, taxis operating on the CSAT day will actively cooperate by giving priority rides to examinees.

For examinees using public transportation on the day, subway and bus interiors will provide route and location information for test sites to help them arrive safely within the commute time. Buses passing by test sites will display signs indicating the test site on their front windows and make announcements at nearby stops. Subways will post test site information at stations near the test sites and provide exit guidance announcements toward the test sites.

Additionally, 760 public and private vehicles marked with “Examinee Transport Support Vehicle” signs will be stationed near subway stations, bus stops, and key locations close to test sites, offering free rides to examinees upon request. All supported vehicles will have undergone prior disinfection, be equipped with hand sanitizers and spare masks, and to ensure safer transport, personnel will be assigned at each vehicle waiting area to conduct temperature checks, allowing only those with normal body temperatures to board.

Furthermore, Seoul City will prioritize dispatching disabled call taxis to examinees with mobility difficulties on the CSAT day to ensure comfortable transportation to test sites. Examinees wishing to use disabled call taxis to reach their schools can make advance reservations through the Disabled Call Taxi Customer Center starting November 9, and even without prior reservation, priority dispatch will be provided upon request on the test day. Return trip reservations will also be accepted to help these examinees conveniently return home after the exam.

Meanwhile, to prevent examinees from being delayed due to traffic congestion during commute hours, the city, autonomous districts, and public corporations will adjust their work start times on the test day to 10 a.m., one hour later than usual.

During commute hours, about 2,600 personnel including district officials and volunteers will be deployed from early morning alongside the police at test site surroundings and major traffic points to assist with boarding emergency transport vehicles and maintaining traffic order, facilitating the swift movement and guidance of examinees. To help examinees concentrate in a quiet environment, requests will be made in advance to reduce noise from construction sites near test sites and to refrain from honking by buses and taxis, while each district will patrol the test site vicinity to thoroughly manage noise.

To minimize traffic congestion on the CSAT day, vehicle entry, exit, and parking will be prohibited within a 200-meter radius around test sites, and illegal parking or stopping that disrupts traffic flow will be subject to fines and towing enforcement.

Baek Ho, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Urban Transportation Office, said, “Even amid the COVID-19 situation, we will comprehensively support transportation convenience so that about 110,000 examinees can fully concentrate on the exam in a safe environment and achieve their desired results. We ask examinees’ families and acquaintances to minimize gathering at test sites and to quietly support from home, and we also request general citizens to cooperate with the transportation measures.”

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