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Seoul considers raising subway fares
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ThingsComeAround



Joined: 07 Nov 2008
PostPosted: Sun May 22, 2011 10:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Funny how they talk about lost money...

The Gyeongui line is fantastic but way too many resources went into it. I mean, they spent a small fortune for huge stations when its only partially active. For example- Baegma station has a parking lot above however it isn't in use. Why build it?

I like to use the underground as much as I can- but it stinks of BO and soju 70% of the time. What's more, it's slower than the bus and usually people can't get a seat unless they are near the end of the line or during extreme times (early morning or late late at night)
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winterfall



Joined: 21 May 2009
PostPosted: Sun May 22, 2011 11:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Just get the commuter card. I travel from dongducheon to dongdaemun every day. Morning and night. Only pay 50,000 a month, covers 60 rides for 30 days. At the discount fare your paying vs regular fare. You get your money's worth after 30, or 40 rides.
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crossmr



Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 12:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
atwood wrote:
Give senior citizens a discount, but not a completely free ride.

And cut the spending on new maps etc. in the cars when the old ones are perfectly good. And why install new monitors every 5 meters or so along the platform? There is a lot of waste that could be cut.

I think it's hard to justify raising fares when you're extending so many lines and increasing ridership and thus lowering the quality of the service you're providing. Charging more for less is what they're trying to do.

Given the overall costs, things like monitors are trivial. It might seem like a lot to us, but to a system of that size and volume, it's a minuscule percentage.
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crossmr



Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 12:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Last I checked seniors in Calgary, for example, paid like $35/year for unlimited transit.
Even, 5000won/month might be enough.
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NSMatt



Joined: 29 Dec 2008
Location: London
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 1:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
DaHu wrote:
NSMatt wrote:
PigeonFart wrote:
The Seoul public transport system is staggeringly inexpensive. A ten or twenty percent increase would still result in a cheap and efficient public transport system. If only other cities had such a good system.


Indeed. It's nonsensical to run a deficit when the fare could be raised without causing financial hardship to the general public.


It WOULD cause financial hardship to people. Who said it wouldn't?


The rate of change hasn't even kept up with inflation. If you want to consider any rate increase to be 'financial hardship' then continue go ahead and believe that. The rate of change has been far less than almost every other consumer item. Prolonged deficits will cost far more in the long run and therefore cause true financial hardship
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CtotheB



Joined: 03 Sep 2010
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 3:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Wow, amazing that free rides to bored old folks accounts for over 40 percent of the operating losses.

Also I love how the article misspelled "fare". Fail.
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sojusucks



Joined: 31 May 2008
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 3:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
CtotheB wrote:
Wow, amazing that free rides to bored old folks accounts for over 40 percent of the operating losses.

Also I love how the article misspelled "fare". Fail.


It's a lot of people riding all of the time. Remember, they're on the subway from opening to closing time.
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hogwonguy1979



Joined: 22 Dec 2003
Location: the racoon den
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 4:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
not sure about this but havent their labor costs gone down in the past few years because i dont think a majority of the stations are staffed as much as in past years, the station offices where you could buy tickets etc are all closed.

on the subject of senior citizens i say from age 65-70 say make the fare 500 won and then free over age 70, that will make up a bunch of the deficit
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atwood



Joined: 26 Dec 2009
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 4:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
crossmr wrote:
atwood wrote:
Give senior citizens a discount, but not a completely free ride.

And cut the spending on new maps etc. in the cars when the old ones are perfectly good. And why install new monitors every 5 meters or so along the platform? There is a lot of waste that could be cut.

I think it's hard to justify raising fares when you're extending so many lines and increasing ridership and thus lowering the quality of the service you're providing. Charging more for less is what they're trying to do.

Given the overall costs, things like monitors are trivial. It might seem like a lot to us, but to a system of that size and volume, it's a minuscule percentage.

The monitors, the screen doors, the escalators that are installed and aren't used, and the graft that accompany them adds up, especially when it's constant. There's always something more being done to these stations. And thre are a lot of stations.

When you're running a deficit do you keep spending with the idea it's "trivial" or with the idea you can eventually pass it on to riders?

Your posts regarding operating costs leave out one important factor--is the system being operated efficiently and thus said costs are reasonable or is it not and the costs are needlessly inflated.
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atwood



Joined: 26 Dec 2009
PostPosted: Mon May 23, 2011 4:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
sojusucks wrote:
CtotheB wrote:
Wow, amazing that free rides to bored old folks accounts for over 40 percent of the operating losses.

Also I love how the article misspelled "fare". Fail.


It's a lot of people riding all of the time. Remember, they're on the subway from opening to closing time.

And they're fierce. To get a seat on the Bundang line you've got to be quick. And then it's usually not worth it because you end up having to get up for some oldster.
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liveinkorea316



Joined: 20 Aug 2010
Location: South Korea