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Seoul Metro inundated with subway car temperature complaints, hindering emergency responses

Published: 20 Jun. 2025, 16:43

Passengers ride a Line No. 7 subway in Seoul on May 16, 2024. [YONHAP]

More than 280,000 complaints were filed over heating and air conditioning in Seoul’s subway trains during the first five months of this year, prompting concerns that the sheer volume may hinder responses to more urgent matters such as medical emergencies.

A total of 283,972 complaints related to cabin temperature were lodged from January through May, accounting for 75.5 percent of all customer complaints received via the Seoul Metro’s call center, according to the company on Friday. In May alone, as temperatures rose, more than 110,000 complaints were filed.

A breakdown of last year’s data showed that complaints surged during peak commuting hours — between 7 and 9 a.m. and 6 and 8 p.m. — with 623,969 complaints about cars being too hot and 35,538 about them being too cold. In some cases, both types of complaints were made about the same car during the same time slot, leaving call center staff in a bind.

Line No. 2, the busiest in the system, accounted for the largest share of temperature-related complaints at 35 percent, followed by Line No. 7 with 20.6 percent and Line No. 5 with 12.6 percent.

Subway car temperatures are automatically controlled by individual sensors, with the default set at 24 degrees Celsius (75.2 degrees Fahrenheit) for regular cars and 25 degrees for mild cooling cars, in accordance with Environment Ministry guidelines.

Seoul Metro recommends that heat-sensitive riders use the official Seoul Subway app to check for real-time congestion levels and choose less crowded cars, which tend to feel cooler.

There is also variation depending on seating location. The coolest areas are near the priority seats at either end of the car, while the warmest are in the center.

Those who feel cold are advised to use the mild cooling cars, where the temperature is set one degree higher. These are the 4th and 7th cars on Lines 1, 3 and 4; the 4th and 5th cars on Lines 5, 6 and 7; and the 3rd and 4th cars on Line 8. Line No. 2, due to its high congestion, does not operate mild cooling cars.

“The overwhelming volume of temperature complaints is affecting our ability to respond promptly to more urgent issues like medical emergencies,” said a Seoul Metro official. “We ask passengers to use the Seoul Subway app or our official chatbot for temperature-related feedback.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY KIM JI-HYE [[email protected]]