Seoul Metro "Jeonjangyeon Protest Before Holidays Must Stop"

"Disruptions Expected in Return Trip Traffic"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] Seoul Metro requested on the 19th that the National Solidarity for the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Jeonjangyeon) refrain from the protest announced for tomorrow.

Jeonjangyeon stated that they will hold a protest tomorrow to commemorate a person with a disability who died at Oido Station on January 22, 2001. The locations announced by Jeonjangyeon are Oido Station at 8 a.m., Seoul Station at 9 a.m., and Samgakji Station platform at 2 p.m.

Members of the National Solidarity for the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities held a press conference on the 5th of last month at Samgak Station on Seoul Subway Line 4 in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, urging the expansion of the budget for disability rights. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The Metro pointed out that since the Lunar New Year holiday begins on the 21st, many passengers are expected to gather at Seoul Station on the 20th to start their early homecoming journey. With almost all trains departing from Seoul Station sold out from the morning of the 20th, many passengers will be gathering to board trains, and if Line 4 subway, which is connected to Seoul Station, is delayed, significant damage and inconvenience such as disruption to train use will occur.

If the protest accompanied by train delays proceeds, serious inconvenience to citizens will be caused. Therefore, the Metro requested Jeonjangyeon not to resume the operation-disrupting protest. Past protests commemorating the Oido death incident have involved long delays. Protests were held on January 22, 2021, and January 21, 2022, for the same reason, causing delays of 35 minutes and 1 hour 7 minutes, respectively.

Despite the request to refrain from protesting, in preparation for the possibility of the protest being carried out, the Metro has established safety measures. Support personnel will be deployed to maintain order and manage safety. If the protest involves obstructing train operations, a prompt response will be made to prevent train delays. If the obstruction escalates and serious safety accidents within the station are feared, non-stop passage may be unavoidably implemented.

If non-stop passage is implemented, the Metro plans to promptly inform citizens of the situation using station-wide announcements, crew voice announcements, the official smartphone application (Ttota Subway), and social networking services (SNS).

Lee Taerim, Director of the Sales Planning Department at Seoul Metro, said, “If the protest resumes on January 20, significant delays similar to those in the previous two years are expected, causing great inconvenience to citizens who have started their early homecoming journey.” He added, “The Metro will do its best to minimize train delays through safety measures and ensure a pleasant holiday for many citizens, and we hope Jeonjangyeon will also refrain from protesting.”

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