Seoul Metro Overcoming Financial Difficulties, Public Bidding for Station Name Co-Signage at 50 Stations Including Gangnam

Gangnam Ranks First Nationwide in Passenger Transport, 42 Stations Including Major Transfer Hubs Yeouido and Gongdeok Designated for Dual Naming

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Seoul Metro announced on the 5th that it will officially launch the paid station name co-branding project for 50 stations on subway lines 1 to 8 in Seoul, which was sequentially planned to expand from the second quarter of this year to increase ancillary revenue and overcome financial difficulties. The corporation will start the bidding announcement from the 7th to recruit businesses that will use secondary station names at the target stations.

According to the corporation, the total number of stations subject to this name sale is 50. After the contract period expired, 8 stations were seeking new operators, and based on a preliminary cost survey, 42 additional stations were newly added. Among the new target stations are Gangnam Station, which ranks first nationwide in annual subway passenger volume, and major transfer stations such as Yeouido Station, Gongdeok Station, and Sindorim Station.

To participate in the station name co-branding bidding, the company or institution must be located within 1 km of the target station. The winning company or institution can display their desired institution name as a secondary station name at the target station for the next 3 years, with the possibility of one contract extension (3 years) without re-bidding. Detailed selection criteria can be found in the public announcement guidelines.

The winning companies or institutions will be selected through the paid station name co-branding review committee after the bidding ends, based on the results of the first to third rounds of bid openings. Subsequently, changes and maintenance of station name guide signs will be carried out in consultation with the corporation within 60 days after contract signing, at the expense of the winning bidder.

Jung Sun-in, Head of the New Growth Division at Seoul Metro, said, "This station name co-branding project will help resolve the corporation’s financial difficulties and also provide companies or organizations with a win-win opportunity to widely promote themselves at a reasonable cost based on the symbolic value of the station." He added, "We hope for much interest and participation."

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