(image: Asan City Office)
SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Korea Bizwire) — The Seoul Metropolitan Government will be replacing all of its regular intra-city buses with low-floor vehicles by 2025.
Buses with shorter routes, known locally as “town buses”, will be replaced, in phases, with mid-sized low-floor vehicles starting in 2020.
In addition, the number of taxis available for call by disabled persons will increase, while the use of such taxis will be expanded to include all individuals with severe disabilities.
The current system limits use based on a classification system of disabilities.
Only those with grade 1 to 3 visual disability and 1 to 2 grade stature disability can make use of taxis reserved for disabled people. This grade system categorizing disabled persons will be abolished nationwide in July 2019.
The Seoul government announced the new initiative yesterday, including the aforementioned measures aimed to make transportation use more convenient for the disabled and elderly.
Low-deck buses will have floors that match the height of bus doors, allowing those in wheelchairs and elderly passengers to get on and off the buses more safely and conveniently.
At present, 44 percent of regular city buses (3,112 vehicles) are low-floor, and the city plans to up the ratio for this type of vehicle to 85 percent, which is 5,799 vehicles, by 2022.
By 2025, the city will replace all regular buses with low-floor ones.
In addition, elevators will be installed at the 28 subway stations in Seoul that lack them by 2022.
In the 16 stations that have been deemed impossible to install elevators due to spatial restraints, alternative measures are being considered.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
(image: Yonhap)
