A Han River Bus in operation. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]
A Han River Bus in operation. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]

Seoul's Han River Bus water transit service has surpassed 500,000 cumulative riders roughly 11 months after launching regular operations last year, with nearly half of all trips taken on weekends and a satisfaction rate of 97 percent.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Friday that the Han River Bus, which began regular service on Sept. 18 last year, had recorded 501,430 cumulative riders as of Thursday.

An analysis of ridership data showed that demand is heavily concentrated on weekends. Of the 501,430 cumulative riders counted through Thursday, 243,509 — about 49 percent — traveled on Saturdays or Sundays. Since the service resumed full-route operations on March 1, the weekend share has climbed to about 51 percent.

Among individual piers, Yeouido recorded the highest ridership at 177,893 passengers as of Thursday, followed by Jamsil at 69,227, Magok at 66,818, Ttukseom at 58,526 and Mangwon at 51,965.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it plans to continue analyzing ridership patterns by pier and by day of the week to improve operations and service.

Passenger satisfaction has also been high. A survey of riders conducted last month found that about 97 percent were satisfied with the Han River Bus. In addition, 93 percent of respondents said they intended to use the service again.

To allow residents to enjoy the Han River's nighttime scenery, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will expand Han River Bus night service starting Saturday. Two additional evening departures will be added on the Jamsil-to-Yeouido route at 6:50 p.m. and 7:20 p.m., and two more on the Yeouido-to-Magok route at 8:25 p.m. and 8:55 p.m.

"We will continue to listen closely to riders and monitor actual usage patterns so that the Han River Bus can establish itself as an even more convenient and satisfying water transit service," said Park Jin-young, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Future Han River Bureau.


ikson@heraldcorp.com