On the 14th, the first day of the four-day general strike of the Korea Railroad Workers’ Union (Railroad Workers’ Union), about 200 trains nationwide were suspended and Seoul subway lines 1, 3, and 4 were operated at reduced service, causing great inconvenience to citizens.
Around 10 a.m. on this day, about 20 citizens were standing in line in front of the information desk in the waiting room at Seoul Station to get train tickets. Most of them were elderly people who were not familiar with mobile ticket reservations. Mr. Lee (81), who lives in Daegu, said, “I made a reservation for the KTX at 10:11 a.m., but it wasn’t until I arrived at the station that I found out that the train was canceled.” He added, “I made a reservation for the fastest Saemaeul train I could get in a hurry, but even that was a standing ticket.” He sighed, “Does it make sense that an 80-year-old man has to stand all the way to Dongdae Station?” Choi Ho-sik (71), who lives in Jung-gu, Seoul, said, “I had to go down to Gumi urgently, so I came to Seoul Station, but the seats were almost sold out, so he barely managed to get a ticket four or five hours late.”Chen Mei-hui (27), a Taiwanese tourist who visited Seoul Station with three friends, was confused under the information board that said, “Some trains are being suspended and delayed due to a strike by the railroad union.” He said, “I just found out that the KTX- Sancheon train to Yeosu, which departed from Seoul at 12:04 p.m., was canceled. Even when I got to the station, I couldn’t communicate with the staff and couldn’t understand the announcements, so I wandered around for a while.” Mr. Chen said, “I arrived at Incheon Airport yesterday and made plans to visit Korea with my friends for 4 days and 3 nights and travel to Yeosu and Suncheon, but I am thinking about how to change the schedule.” Many citizens were seen heading to the express bus terminal because they could not purchase train tickets.
On this day, train delays began at 8:30 a.m. on some sections of 메이저놀이터Seoul Subway Line 1. Initially, it was announced that the strike would begin at 9 a.m., but this was due to the decrease in train service as union members participating in the strike left. Mr. Lee (36), who goes to work at City Hall Station from Daerim-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, said, “I left earlier than usual, which is absurd,” and added, “I think I will have to use the bus starting tomorrow.”
With fewer subways running, the carriages were more crowded than usual. Mr. Kim (38), who goes to work from Hongje Station on Line 3 to Gyodae Station, said, “Considering the strike, I applied for flexible work hours to come to work after 10 a.m., but there were as many people as usual during work hours.” The Express Bus Terminal Station, where subway lines 3, 7, and 9 pass, was crowded with passengers all day. An employee who was on safety duty in front of the escalator around 1pm on this day said, “There are not that many passengers at this time, but today there is a steady stream of transfer passengers.”