Seoul Mayor Oh says sorry after intercity bus signs cause traffic chaos

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon apologized on Saturday for inconveniencing commuters after the city government's attempt to install intercity bus signs at the busy Myeong-dong stop in downtown Seoul caused extreme traffic in the area.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, right, visits the intercity bus stop area located at Myeong-dong in downtown Seoul on Saturday after the city government's installation of bus stop signs in the area caused traffic chaos. [SEOUL METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT]

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon apologized on Saturday for inconveniencing commuters after the city government's attempt to install intercity bus signs at the busy Myeong-dong stop in downtown Seoul caused extreme traffic in the area.

Oh visited the problematic bus stop, located across from Lotte Young Plaza in central Seoul, to examine the site.

"I apologize for causing great inconvenience to many commuters in this cold winter," Oh said in a video taken at the site released on his YouTube channel Saturday, adding that the city's new approach should have been considered more carefully before being implemented.

"We have urgently decided to scrap the plan through this month," Oh said.

Oh said he acknowledged that the new signs designed for each intercity bus caused traffic congestion in the area, as buses had to wait in line to stop at the exact spot where the signs were. Over 500 buses stop by the place during afternoon rush hours.

He added that the city government will promptly come up with solutions after listening to people taking buses from the stop and will reflect their thoughts.

The signs were taken down on Friday, allowing commuters to use the buses as they did before the signs were installed on Dec. 27.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Sunday, the proposed measures will be pushed back through this month. For the sake of safety, three staffers will be at the site from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. every day this month starting Monday.

A crowd of people wait in line to take their buses back home at Myeong-dong in Jung District, central Seoul on Thursday. [YONHAP]

The city government's sign installation came amid growing safety concerns with the increased number of buses stopping at the location. Currently, buses traveling 29 different routes stop along the 35-meter-long (115-foot-long) area.

More buses have been stopping by the area after the Metropolitan Transport Commission, under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, pushed for an expansion of routes of the so-called express metropolitan buses, also known as the M-bus, and the ban on standing passengers on intercity buses.

According to the JoongAng Ilbo, buses formed a line of more than 120 meters long that stretched from the bus stop to Sungnyemun Gate at around 7 p.m. on Thursday.

The city government announced on Sunday that it will engage in talks with the Metropolitan Transport Commission and the provincial government of Gyeonggi to resolve the issue this month. It also plans to request that Gyeonggi adjust the routes of six different buses heading to Suwon and Gyeonggi from Seoul.

The metropolitan government will also propose diverting five other buses, ending their routes at Euljiro or Jongno and heading back to Gyeonggi from there. The city government expects the number of passengers in the area to drop by 40 percent to around 5,800 commuters a day if the proposed adjustments are made.

The city government added it will come up with effective measures to address lingering safety concerns and the issue of traffic congestion caused by intercity buses in other parts of the capital, such as near Gangnam Station in southern Seoul.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]