New Technology Helps Commuters Avoid Crowded Subway Cars. (Image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — If you’ve ever walked from one end of a subway platform to the other, searching for the subway car with the most amount of elbow room possible, Korail has something for you.
On August 8, the national railroad operator stated it had begun testing internally developed technology which will inform riders how crowded each subway car is.
This information will be displayed on the screens that show when the next train will be arriving. Each subway car will be designated as vacant, normal or crowded.
It will first be tested at Imae Station on the Gyeonggang Line, with plans for gradual implementation at different stations. (Image: Yonhap)
The technology was developed by the Korea Railroad Research Institute at Korail. As subway cars can’t keep track of the number of riders like buses can through their card readers, the technology developed measures the total weight of each car and categorizes each them into the aforementioned three categories.
It will first be tested at Imae Station on the Gyeonggang Line, with plans for gradual implementation at different stations.
S.B. Woo (sbw266@koreabizwire.com)
