City of Seoul to extend late-night public transit for New Year's Eve

A bus arrives near Jonggak Station in Jongno, central Seoul on Wednesday, with a sign that reads that the bus operation hours will be extended during the bell-ringing ceremony at Bosingak Pavilion on Sunday. (Yonhap)

Subways and buses running in central Seoul will extend late-night operating hours for those enjoying New Year's Eve celebrations, with the bell-ringing ceremony at Bosingak Pavilion and Sejongdaero expected to take place from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m the next day.

Normally, on public holidays subways are scheduled to arrive at their final station by midnight. However, on Sunday, subway trains will operate until 2 a.m. on New Year’s Day. A total of 173 subway trains will run on Line Nos. 1 to 9, the Ui-Sinseol Line and Sillim Line. The last train times will differ depending on the line.

City buses will also extend their hours. However, unlike previous years, as road closures will continue until 7 a.m. on Monday, 38 routes with bus stops close to Bosingak Pavilion will extend their operations. The usual 92 bus routes that run through roads with closures will be redirected, and 38 bus routes that run near places such as Euljiro 1-ga Station, Jongno 3-ga Station and Anguk Station will operate until 2 a.m.

To manage the crowds and assist passengers, Seoul Metro will also station up to 119 employees at eight subway stations near Bosingak Pavilion, including Jonggak Station on Line No. 1 and Gwanghwamun Station on Line No. 5. Usually, around 25 employees are stationed in total.

Also, to prevent any crowd-related accidents inside stations, trains will preemptively pass through Jonggak Station from 11 p.m. on Dec. 31 to 1 a.m. on Jan. 1. If Gwanghwamun Station becomes overly packed, police will be on standby near the station exits for crowd control.

For the safety of pedestrians, 14 public bicycle rental stations near Sejongdaero and Jonggak Station will halt their services from noon on Dec. 31 to 8 a.m. on Jan. 1. Other shared personal mobility devices like electric scooters will also be unavailable for rental.

“To ensure the people’s safety when celebrating New Year’s in Seoul, the city of Seoul will try its best to guarantee safety and convenience by managing traffic safety, such as increasing the availability of public transportation at late hours,” said Yoon Jong-jang, head of the city government’s Urban Transportation Department.