The Seoul Metropolitan Government designated 2019 as the first year for the Seoul Special Pedestrian City and announced The Second Basic Plan for Pedestrian Safety and Convenience Enhancement (2019-2023). This is a medium to long-term plan that will help orient the pedestrian policies of Seoul over the next five years. It contains the plan and principles for the construction of spaces that will give pedestrians priority in a variety of spaces and streets throughout Seoul.

First, the “comprehensive pedestrian-public transportation connection system” will be newly established, providing optimal travel routes for pedestrians by connecting, not only the bus and the subway systems, but also various eco-friendly forms of transportation like the Ttareungyi (Seoul Bikes) and Nanum Car (Shared Cars) with pedestrians. A new app will be developed to provide this service. A diverse array of information, including information regarding convenient facilities near the path of travel, the number of taxis waiting nearby stations, public transportation facilities for vulnerable users, and more, will be conveniently provided.

Improvement to the walking environment will evolve to have proactive countermeasures to the effects of climate change, such as heat waves. Special pavements that reduce the absorption of solar heat will be used for sidewalks in order to lower the heat indices experienced by pedestrians during summer. Additionally, cooling mists, which can lower the ambient temperature by 2-3 degrees Celsius, will be created by spraying artificial fog from devices installed at places where pedestrians often must wait, like at bus stops.

In order to promote walking and the use of public transportation at the same time, the BMW (Bus, Metro, Walk) Mileage Project, through which users can transfer walking mileage into T-money, will be launched.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government has the goal of creating a “Walkable City, Seoul,” where pedestrians are prioritized, following this Second Plan. To this end, it has established three basic principles for walking. The three principles are ▴ the Establishment of Walkable Streets ▴ Making the City Safe and ▴ Building a Virtuous Cycle for the Walking Project.

http://english.seoul.go.kr/five-year-plan-for-the-seoul-special-pedestrian-city-announced/?cp=6&cat=29