Self-driving monorail opens for Eunbong Park visitors, residents

Social Affairs

Published: 16 Feb. 2024, 12:10 Updated: 16 Feb. 2024, 13:58

Self-driving monorail opens for Eunbong Park visitors, residents

Autopilot monorail operates for a route connecting Shindang Hyundai Apartment in Jung District, central Seoul and Eunbong Park in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul. [YONHAP]

A self-driving monorail near a park in downtown Seoul started operations on Thursday, Jung District announced on Friday.

The 110-meter-long (360-foot-long) rail runs between Shindang Hyundai Apartment in Jung District, central Seoul and Eunbong Park in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul.

The monorail will ease the burden of climbing steep stairs and make the park more accessible to visitors, the city said.

The free-of-charge monorail operates every day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

It can carry a maximum of 15 passengers per ride and accommodate wheelchairs and baby strollers.

There are three stops: a departing station, a mid-point stop and a final stop.

The single-way journey takes around three to four minutes.

The monorail's windows are opaque to protect the privacy of the apartment's residents.

Once a passenger on board pushes the button, the monorail will automatically begin to operate along the track.

The district office also adjusted the steepness of the rock steps through refurbishment.

Kim Gil-sung, head of Jung District, rides the monorail with neighborhood's residents on Thursday in Seoul. [JUNG DISTRICT]

Before the monorail was introduced, people had to climb up and use steep stairs to get to the park. Occasionally, rain and snow made the path slippery, posing a hazard to pedestrians and park visitors.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government in 2020 chose the project of improving access to Eunbong Park through a public contest. Construction began in September 2022.

“People no longer need to take the steep stairs to go to the park and the district itself will become residents’ carriage through monorail service,” Kim Gil-sung, head of Jung District, said during a speech at the opening ceremony on Thursday.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]