Expansion of Wide-Area Bus Seat Reservation System... 243 Runs on 50 Routes

The government will gradually expand the routes and number of operations applying the seat reservation system for reducing passenger congestion on metropolitan buses starting from June.

On the 16th, the Metropolitan Transport Commission (MTC) under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport held a meeting chaired by Chairman Lee Seong-hae to discuss and finalize plans to activate the metropolitan bus seat reservation service, including the expansion of the service.

An empty seat count of '0' is displayed on a bus in operation at a bus stop in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The meeting was attended by representatives from Gyeonggi Province, Gyeonggi Bus Transport Business Association, KD Transportation Group, K-One Mobility Group, Seonjin Group, Gyeongnam Passenger, Locomobility, and Wizdom from the industry.

The metropolitan bus seat reservation service allows passengers to reserve seats in advance through a mobile app and board the bus immediately at the stop without waiting at the designated time.

The MTC decided to gradually expand the seat reservation service from the current 23 routes with 39 operations to 50 routes with 243 operations.

Starting reservations on July 1 and operations from July 8, 34 routes include Goyang M7106, which runs from Daehwa Station in Goyang City, Gyeonggi Province to Sungnyemun, Suwon City’s 3000 route running from Suwon Sports Complex to Gangnam Station, and Anyang M5333 running between Beomgye Station and Jamsil Station.

Thirteen routes, including Namyangju M2353, will start reservations on July 3 and begin operations on July 10, while three routes, including Goyang M7119, will start reservations on August 1 and operate from August 8.

Additionally, the MTC plans to enhance service convenience by expanding the mobile apps available for reservations, linking with SNS accounts, and adding favorites for easier seat booking. They will also provide arrival notification services with vehicle numbers to help passengers easily find their reserved buses and attach dedicated logos on the vehicles.

To prevent confusion, boarding locations for general and reserved buses will be separated, and immediate notifications will be provided in case reserved buses cannot operate due to breakdowns or other issues.

Chairman Lee Seong-hae of the MTC said, “The metropolitan bus seat reservation system offers better public transportation services at the same price,” adding, “We will continue to strive for metropolitan transportation innovation to give people back their commuting time.”

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