Seoul Subway Line 9

Line 9
Line 9
Overview
Native name	9호선( số 9 tuyến ); Gu Hoseon
Status	Operational
Owner	Seoul Metro Line 9 Corporation,Seoul Metro
Termini	Gaehwa; VHS Medical Center;
Stations	38
Service
Type	Rapid transit
System	Seoul Metropolitan Subway
Operator(s)	Seoul Line9 Operation
History
Opened	July 24, 2009
Technical
Line length	40.6 km (25.2 mi)
Number of tracks	2 (4 at express service stations)
Electrification	1,500 V DCoverhead catenary
Route map
Route map
	Legend
	Gimpo
	International Airport
	Macheon
	branch
Key
	This diagram: view; talk; edit;

Seoul Subway Line 9,operated by Seoul Line9 Operation, is a subway line inSeoul,part of theSeoul Metropolitan Subway.The line runs east fromGaehwa station(local train terminal) orGimpo International Airport station(express train terminal, connecting toLine 5,AREX,theGimpo Goldlineand theSeohae Line) along the south bank of theHan RivertowardsVHS Medical Centerin Gangdong. In 2019, Line 9 had an annual ridership of 225 million or about 616,000 people per day.^[1]

Line 9 was constructed as a double track subway, but several stations featurepassing loopsenabling express trains to overtake local trains.Express trainsrun around five times per hour in each direction. All stations are equipped withelevators,escalators,andplatform screen doors.

Phase 1 (Gaewha to Sinnonhyeon) was the first privately run subway line in Korea. The franchisee of phase 1 isSeoul Metro Line 9 Corporation(SML9), which oversaw the construction of phase 1. SML9 contracted the operation to Seoul Line9 (SL9), a joint venture ofHyundai Rotem(20%) andRATP Dev Transdev Asia(80%, formerlyVeolia TransportKorea).^[2]Collectively, SLM9 and SL9 are known as Metro9. However, phase 2 (Sinnonhyeon to Sports Complex) and further phases are operated bySeoul Metro.

History

Line 9 was one of the lines first discussed as part of Seoul's 3rd phase of subway construction in 1991. In 1993, Seoul announced a plan for new construction of subway lines 9~12 and the extension of subway line 3. Construction of the 3rd phase was delayed by the 1995Daegu explosions,funding issues, the1997 financial crisisand a 1998 review of the plan that reduced the scope of the 3rd phase. In 2001, the city passed the feasibility study and execution designs for line 9 and confirmed the commencement of construction.^[3]

Construction of Phase 1 between Gaehwa andSinnonhyeonbegan in April 2002. Originally scheduled to open on June 12, 2009, the line opened on July 24, 2009, to ensure that the line was fully ready to begin service.^[4]Line 9 opened with 24 four-car trains numbered 9-01~9–24; the express service ran every 20 minutes and the local service every 6.7 minutes.

Due to increasing ridership (numbers soon exceeded 250,000 per day), 12 additional four-car trains were ordered to alleviate capacity constraints.^[5]These trains, numbered 9–25~9–36, entered service on October 15, 2011. This allowed for the express service headway to be shortened to 10 minutes and the local service headway to 5 minutes. On September 30, 2013, additional express trains were added during commuting times of 7 to 9 AM (from 22 to 36), further reducing the headway.^[6]

Phase 2 extended the line fromSinnonhyeonin Gangnam toSports Complex station (Seoul)on Line 2, and was opened on March 28, 2015.^[7]Phase 3 further extended the line toVHS Medical Center Stationin eastern Seoul,^[8]and was opened on December 1, 2018.^[9]The following workdays saw a 6.4% increase in passengers, roughly 145,000 people, as the line now services a larger area to the east.^[10]

Due to severe capacity issues on the express service due to increasing ridership, express trains were gradually lengthened to six cars starting on December 30, 2017.^[11]Non-express trains were also expanded to six-car trains by the end of 2019. An additional three trains were expected to be delivered by the end of 2019, but have not been delivered as of January 2020.^[10]

Future

The line is expected to be extended four stops north to Saemteo Park in Gangdong. One of the stations will provide another transfer toSeoul Subway Line 5atGodeok.

The Korean government initially proposed a one-seat ride from Incheon International Airport to Gangnam via Gimpo International Airport using either Line 9 or Airport Railroad trains sharing their rights of way by the year 2023.^[8]This proposal so far has not been implemented thus making it necessary to transfer trains at Gimpo International Airport.

Ticket price debate

Negotiations in 2005 between the operator and the Seoul city government resulted in an agreement of a basic fare rate set at 1,264 won upon opening of the line in 2009 with a further increase to 1,398 won by 2012 to allow for inflation. Prior to opening of the line, the operator requested a base rate of 1,300 won. The city government decided against this by citing a domestic financial crisis and potential complaints from riders if the price was set at a higher rate than the rest of the subway system. The city therefore set the initial ticket fare at 900 won, the standard fare for entrance to the rest of the Seoul subway system in 2009. The rate was locked for a period of 12 months and was later locked for three years despite multiple requests from the operator for a higher starting fare.^[12]

In February 2012, the price increased to 1,050 won across all metro lines, including Line 9. Within two months, Metro9, the operator of Line 9, announced the price would further increase another 500 won starting from June 16, 2012 on only Line 9. The Seoul city government disagreed with this and threatened to fine Metro9 10 million won per day if the 500 won price increase occurred.^[13]^[14]^[15]The planned rate increase was withdrawn on May 9, and Metro9 issued an apology. Seoul City will be in negotiations again with the help of legal counsel to determine the differences of opinions in the original agreement.^[16]Currently, an additional scan of a metro card transfers in between Line 9 and other Seoul subway lines does not accrue additional fees.

Construction costs and deficit

The construction of Phase 1 cost 900 billionwon(roughly equivalent to 827 million US dollars),^[17]480 billion of which was pooled between 12 firms with the remaining borne by Seoul city and the national government. By 2012, the line was operating at a loss with 90% of losses being covered by the city.^[18]The accumulated deficit has passed 180 billion won.^[13]

While Phase 2 was always planned to go ahead as scheduled, aSeoul Metropolitan Governmentwebsite at one point described construction of Phase 3 as being suspended in consideration of transport demand and financial considerations.^[19]On November 20, 2008, the Seoul Metropolitan government announced plans to build Phase 3 between October 2010 and December 2015.^[20]

Stations

Express trains stop at stations marked "●" and pass stations marked "|". There is no express service at stations filled in black on the "EX" column.

All stations are inSeoul.

Station Number	Station name			EX	Transfer	Station distance	Total distance	Location
Station Number	Romanized	Hangul	Hanja	EX	Transfer	in km		Location

901	Gaehwa	개화	Khai Hoa			---	0.0	Gangseo-gu
902	Gimpo Int'l Airport	김포공항	Kim Phổ Không Cảng	●		3.6	3.6
903	Airport Market	공항시장	Không Cảng Thị Tràng	\|		0.8	4.4
904	Sinbanghwa	신방화	Tân Bàng Hoa	\|		0.8	5.2
905	Magongnaru (Seoul Botanic Park)	마곡나루 (서울식물원)	Ma Cốc나루	●		0.9	6.1
906	Yangcheon Hyanggyo	양천향교	Dương Xuyên Hương Giáo	\|		1.4	7.5
907	Gayang	가양	Thêm Dương	●		1.3	8.8
908	Jeungmi	증미	Từng Mễ	\|		0.7	9.5
909	Deungchon	등촌	Đăng Thôn	\|		1.0	10.5
910	Yeomchang	염창	Muối Thương	●		0.9	11.4
911	Sinmokdong	신목동	Tân Mộc Động	\|		0.9	12.3	Yangcheon-gu
912	Seonyudo	선유도	Tiên Du Đảo	\|		1.2	13.5	Yeongdeungpo-gu
913	Dangsan	당산	Đường Sơn	●		1.0	14.5
914	National Assembly (KDB Bank)	국회의사당 (KDB산업은행)	Quốc Sẽ Nghị Sự Đường	\|		1.5	16.0
915	Yeouido	여의도	Nhữ Rồi Đảo	●		0.9	16.9
916	Saetgang (KB Financial Town)	샛강 (KB금융타운)	샛강	\|		0.8	17.7
917	Noryangjin	노량진	Lộ Lương Tân	●		1.2	18.9	Dongjak-gu
918	Nodeul	노들	노들	\|		1.1	20.0
919	Heukseok (Chung-Ang Univ.)	흑석 (중앙대입구)	Hắc Thạch (Trung Ương Đại Nhập Khẩu)	\|		1.1	21.1
920	Dongjak (Seoul National Cemetery)	동작 (현충원)	Đồng Tước (Hiện Trung Viện)	●		1.4	22.5
921	Gubanpo	구반포	Cũ Bàn Phổ	\|		1.0	23.5	Seocho-gu
922	Sinbanpo	신반포	Tân Bàn Phổ	\|		0.7	24.2
923	Express Bus Terminal	고속터미널	Cao Tốc터미널	●		0.8	25.0
924	Sapyeong	사평	Sa Bình	\|		1.1	26.1
925	Sinnonhyeon	신논현	Tân Luận Hiện	●		0.9	27.0	Gangnam-gu
926	Eonju (CHA Gangnam Medical Center)	언주 (강남차병원)	Ngạn Châu	\|		0.8	27.8
927	Seonjeongneung	선정릉	Tuyên Tĩnh Lăng	●		0.9	28.7
928	Samseong Jungang	삼성중앙	Tam Thành Trung Ương	\|		0.8	29.5
929	Bongeunsa	봉은사	Phụng Ân Chùa	●		0.8	30.3
930	Sports Complex	종합운동장	Tổng Hợp Vận Động Tràng	●		1.4	31.7	Songpa-gu
931	Samjeon	삼전	Tam Điền	\|		1.4	33.1
932	Seokchon Gobun	석촌고분	Thạch Thôn Cổ Mồ	\|		0.8	33.9
933	Seokchon (Hansol Hospital)	석촌 (한솔병원)	Thạch Thôn	●		1.0	34.9
934	Songpanaru	송파나루	Tùng Sườn núi나루	\|		0.8	35.7
935	Hanseong Baekje	한성백제	Hán Thành Trăm Tế	\|		0.8	36.5
936	Olympic Park (Korea National Sport Univ.)	올림픽공원 (한국체대)	올림픽Công Viên	●		1.4	37.9
937	Dunchon Oryun	둔촌오륜	Độn Thôn Năm Luân	\|		1.0	38.9	Gangdong-gu
938	VHS Medical Center	중앙보훈병원	Báo Huân Bệnh Viện	●		1.7	40.6
939	Gil-dong Ecological Park(2027)	길동생태공원	Cát động sinh thái công viên	\|		1.2	41.8
940	Sinmyeongil(2027)	신명일	Tân minh dật	\|		1.2	43.0
941	Godeok (Kyung Hee Univ. Hospital at Gangdong) (2027)	고덕 (강동경희대병원)	Cao Đức	●		0.7	43.7
942	Saemteo Park(2027)	샘터공원	샘터Công Viên			2.2	45.9

References

^"서울시 지하철수송 통계".data.seoul.go.kr(in Korean).Retrieved2021-05-21.
^"Veolia Transport to operate Line 9 of the Seoul subway system, starting July 2009".United States Securities and Exchange Commission. March 7, 2007.Retrieved2014-08-19.
^Kim, Dr. Seung-Jun; Ko, Dr. Joon-Ho."Introduction of Rapid Urban Railway System – Construction of Subway Line 9"(PDF).Retrieved20 April2018.
^"Subway Line 9 to Open Friday".Korea Times.July 20, 2009.Retrieved2013-07-12.
^"9호선 전동차 추가 도입"(in Korean).Munhwa Ilbo.Retrieved2011-05-19.
^이, 광철 (11 September 2013)."'출근 지옥철' 9호선 급행열차 운행 늘려 ".Daum 뉴스(in Korean).
^Kwak, Chang-ryeol (2015-03-28)."지하철9호선 2구간 개통… 김포공항~종합운동장 38분".조선일보(in Korean). Archived fromthe originalon 2023-12-01.Retrieved2024-12-12.
^^a ^bLee, Hyun-jeong (2015-05-26)."Incheon airport subway links to be extended".The Korea Herald.Retrieved2016-05-30.
^"강동→강남 20분대! 9호선 종합운동장~보훈병원 개통".mediahub.seoul.go.kr(in Korean). 2018-11-28.Retrieved2024-12-12.
^^a ^bLee, Suh-yoon (4 December 2018)."Line 9 extension fans overcrowding fears".The Korea Times.Retrieved5 December2018.
^"9호선 '6량열차' 운행시작…하루 총 52회"(in Korean). Seoul Metropolitan Government. 29 December 2017.
^PARK, Jinyoung; MUN, Jinsu (2014). "Chapter 3: Issues and Improvement Efforts of Railway PPP Projects in Korea". In KIM, Gunyoung; MOORE, Richard (eds.).Korea's Railway PPP (Public-Private Partnership) Projects.KOTI Knowledge Sharing Report book series. Vol. 11. South Korea: The Korea Transport Institute. pp.52–54.ISBN 978-89-5503-658-9.
^^a ^bKim, Rahn (April 15, 2012)."Seoul City in feud with subway operator over fare hike".Korea Times.Retrieved19 April2012.
^Bae, Ji-sook (April 16, 2012)."Seoul City, subway operator feud over fares".The Korea Herald.Retrieved19 April2012.
^"Fare Hike Planned for Seoul's Subway Line No 9".Arirang. April 16, 2012.Retrieved19 April2012.
^Rahn, Kim (May 9, 2012)."Subway line 9 operator drops fare hike plan".The Korea Times.Retrieved2012-05-15.
^"The Currency Converter".Coinmill.Retrieved2015-02-09.
^"[Editorial] Subway Line No. 9".The Korea Herald.April 16, 2012.Retrieved19 April2012.
^"Vision Seoul 2016".Seoul Metropolitan Government. Archived fromthe originalon December 24, 2004.RetrievedSeptember 10,2005.
^Han, Woojin."서울도시철도 9호선 (2, 3단계)".미래철도(in Korean).

External links

Seoul Metro Line 9 Corporation Homepage
The Seoul Underground Subway: Official Tourism (English)
Seoul Metropolitan Government Line 9 page(Korean) includes a route map, status information and links to the construction companies' websites
UrbanRail.Net's Seoul Subway page
New Subway Line Connects Gimpo Airport to Southern Seoul
SMRT Map, station and route finder

[1] "서울시 지하철수송 통계".data.seoul.go.kr(in Korean).Retrieved2021-05-21.

[2] "Veolia Transport to operate Line 9 of the Seoul subway system, starting July 2009".United States Securities and Exchange Commission. March 7, 2007.Retrieved2014-08-19.

[3] Kim, Dr. Seung-Jun; Ko, Dr. Joon-Ho."Introduction of Rapid Urban Railway System – Construction of Subway Line 9"(PDF).Retrieved20 April2018.

[4] "Subway Line 9 to Open Friday".Korea Times.July 20, 2009.Retrieved2013-07-12.

[5] "9호선 전동차 추가 도입"(in Korean).Munhwa Ilbo.Retrieved2011-05-19.

[6] 이, 광철 (11 September 2013)."'출근 지옥철' 9호선 급행열차 운행 늘려 ".Daum 뉴스(in Korean).

[7] Kwak, Chang-ryeol (2015-03-28)."지하철9호선 2구간 개통… 김포공항~종합운동장 38분".조선일보(in Korean). Archived fromthe originalon 2023-12-01.Retrieved2024-12-12.

[KoreaHerald2018Completion-8] Lee, Hyun-jeong (2015-05-26)."Incheon airport subway links to be extended".The Korea Herald.Retrieved2016-05-30.

[9] "강동→강남 20분대! 9호선 종합운동장~보훈병원 개통".mediahub.seoul.go.kr(in Korean). 2018-11-28.Retrieved2024-12-12.

[:phase3open-10] Lee, Suh-yoon (4 December 2018)."Line 9 extension fans overcrowding fears".The Korea Times.Retrieved5 December2018.

[11] "9호선 '6량열차' 운행시작…하루 총 52회"(in Korean). Seoul Metropolitan Government. 29 December 2017.

[12] PARK, Jinyoung; MUN, Jinsu (2014). "Chapter 3: Issues and Improvement Efforts of Railway PPP Projects in Korea". In KIM, Gunyoung; MOORE, Richard (eds.).Korea's Railway PPP (Public-Private Partnership) Projects.KOTI Knowledge Sharing Report book series. Vol. 11. South Korea: The Korea Transport Institute. pp.52–54.ISBN 978-89-5503-658-9.

[koreatimes1-13] Kim, Rahn (April 15, 2012)."Seoul City in feud with subway operator over fare hike".Korea Times.Retrieved19 April2012.

[14] Bae, Ji-sook (April 16, 2012)."Seoul City, subway operator feud over fares".The Korea Herald.Retrieved19 April2012.

[15] "Fare Hike Planned for Seoul's Subway Line No 9".Arirang. April 16, 2012.Retrieved19 April2012.

[16] Rahn, Kim (May 9, 2012)."Subway line 9 operator drops fare hike plan".The Korea Times.Retrieved2012-05-15.

[17] "The Currency Converter".Coinmill.Retrieved2015-02-09.

[18] "[Editorial] Subway Line No. 9".The Korea Herald.April 16, 2012.Retrieved19 April2012.

[19] "Vision Seoul 2016".Seoul Metropolitan Government. Archived fromthe originalon December 24, 2004.RetrievedSeptember 10,2005.

[20] Han, Woojin."서울도시철도 9호선 (2, 3단계)".미래철도(in Korean).

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