Those living in the Seoul Capital Area, which includes Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province spent an average of 37.7 minutes, 13.5 minutes more than those living outside the capital. (Image credit: Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, April 20 (Korea Bizwire) – A recent survey conducted by Statistics Korea showed commuters in Seoul spend an average of around 40 minutes to get to work or school, adding up to a total of nearly an hour and a half of travel every day.
Nearly 1.5 million people commute into Seoul from outside the city, according to the statistics released yesterday, with most coming from Gyeonggi Province.
The 2015 census showed the number of individuals older than 12 who commuted as of November 2015 was 29 million, accounting for 66.7 percent of the entire population.
South Koreans spend an average of 30.9 minutes going to their workplace or school every morning, 1.7 minutes longer than the figure from 2010.
Those living in the Seoul Capital Area, which includes Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province spent an average of 37.7 minutes, 13.5 minutes more than those living outside the capital.
Nearly 1.5 million people commute into Seoul from outside the city, according to the statistics released yesterday, with most coming from Gyeonggi Province. (Image: Kobiz Media)
When narrowed down by city, commuters in Seoul spent the longest time getting to their destination, with the average commute estimated at 39.3 minutes, while Incheon (38.7 minutes) and Gyeonggi (36.2 minutes) followed closely.
However, an official from Statistics Korea warned that the actual time spent commuting could be longer.
“The study was conducted based on the time spent going to work. As people tend to be more relaxed and slower on the way home, the total commuting time might be longer,” the official noted.
Of 29 million commuters in Korea, one in two were from Seoul and its surrounding areas.
Among those living in the Seoul Capital Area, nearly 12 million people commuted within the same city and province, while some 2.5 million people travelled to other cities to go to work or school.
Nearly 1.5 million commuters traveled to Seoul, with most of them hailing from Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, with around 32,000 people traveling from outside the Seoul Capital Area.
Cars were the most popular means of transport, accounting for 37.4 percent of all trips, while buses accounted for 15.2 percent and the subway for 13.9 percent.
Among the respondents, 11.4 percent said they typically take more than two types of transport during their commute.
Seoul was identified as having the largest net inflow of commuters, while Incheon had the largest net outflow.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
