Transportation in Donggyong
Donggyŏng, the capital of the Socialist Republic of Menghe, has extensive and sophisticated transportation infrastructure, intended to serve its population of 15 million people as well as tourists and suburban commuters. From the city’s first railway line in 1877 and a handful of streetcars in the 1900s, the city’s public transportation steadily grew during the second half of the 20th century, and rapidly expanded in the 1990s and 2000s to catch up with the city’s explosive growth. As of February 2017, the city has two airports, three major train stations, seven major commuter train lines, and seventeen metro lines with 308 stations and 466.5 kilometers of track running each way. These are supplemented by city buses, taxis, and an expanding bicycle infrastructure. Owing to the speed of the city’s development, traffic in the city center remains notoriously heavy during rush hour, making public transportation a particularly attractive alternative.
Airports
Donggyŏng Airport was the first of the city’s airports, originating as a dirt runway for military and high-level political use in 1929. Before then, the few flights in and out of the city were conducted by seaplane, and military aircraft used grass fields or stretches of beach to take off and land. It became a major site for civil aviation in 1954, though it also hosted military aircraft of the Allied occupation forces. In 1965 it was reopened as Donggyŏng Capital Airport, but drew little international traffic and continued to rely on two short paved runways and a small terminal. During the economic miracle of the 1990s, Donggyŏng Capital Airport received increased traffic, and in 1996 it opened a new terminal and a new runway.
Concern about the expansion of suburbs around the airport, and surprise at the increase in flights to and from the city, led the municipal government to request the construction of a new airport serving the city. With rough terrain around the expanding outskirts limiting space and land prices rapidly rising, the government eventually decided to build the new airport atop an artificial island off the coast of Gyŏngnam.
Donggyŏng citizens opposed the move, as the new site was on the far side of the Kimhae Sea; on the then-existing bridge network, it would require a 50-kilometer drive through urban areas to reach the site from the city center at Bingang Island. Nevertheless, the government pushed ahead, beginning construction in 2003 and opening the site in 2006 as Kimhae International Airport. In the same year, the municipal government opened an express "sprinter" train line running from the airport edge to Donggyŏng’s main stations. The Bridge of the National Economic Miracle, opened in 2007, reduced the commute by car. There have been some proposals to build a subway or highway tunnel connecting Kimhae International Airport directly to Bingang Island by passing under the Kimhae Sea, but thus far the municipal government has not approved any for construction.
Roads
The city of Donggyŏng is connected to a number of major expressways, which link it to other major cities and to the surrounding countryside. Some of these become major avenues, such as the famous Meridian Avenue running between Donggwangsan and Heroes’ Square in the Old City, which serves as the central route for military parades and other major processions. Others connect to the city’s Ring Roads, or divert around the outskirts, allowing long-distance drivers to bypass city traffic.
Outside of highways, the road network alternates between grid and semi-grid systems, some of which were planned in the Ŭi period. New expansions of the city, including northern Nampo, southern Gyŏngnam, Sinsuk, and Bingang, are built on a regular grid arrangement planned by the municipal government. Clashing street grids are a common feature of areas where new developments meet up, and are often filled by parks, plazas, or internal expressways. Only the Old City within Gyŏngnam, and some villages annexed by Donggyŏng, have completely non-grid road systems.
Major Bridges
The wider Donggyŏng area is home to three road bridges with lengths of over 1 kilometer. The furthest upriver is the Choe Chi-Wŏn Bridge (최치원 대교, Choe Chiwŏn Daegyo), a suspension bridge linking Nampo with western Gyŏngnam. It was built in 1951, to replace an earlier bridge destroyed during the Pan-Septentrion War.
Nearer to the city centers is the Bridge of the National Economic Miracle (Menghean: 조국 경제 기적 대교, Joguk Gyŏngje Gijŏk Daegyo), which opened in 2007 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Decembrist Revolution. This is a cable-stayed bridge with three main towers and two 0.9-kilometer spans. The bridge has an overall length of 3.2 kilometers, and connects Donggyŏng’s Maehwa Island with Gyŏngnam. It is more direct than the Choe Chiwŏn Bridge, and carries eight lanes of traffic in total, shortening travel time between the two cities.
Further north still, and technically outside the limits of the Special Metropolitan Area, is the Grand Northern Daema-Do Bridge, which carries six lanes of car traffic from the mainland just south of Binhae to the northwest point of Daema-Do Island. It is 17.2 kilometers long, and relies on mid-height concrete supports for most of its length but rises into a two-tower cable-stayed section in the middle. The central span is 1,038 meters long and peaks at 58 meters of clearance below, allowing all but the largest container ships to pass below. Any ships too tall at current displacement to pass underneath are routed around the south end of Daema-do, which also sees the most traffic. The bases of the towers are also heavily reinforced with concrete barriers ahead of the bases, in order to prevent collapse in the event of a ship colliding with one of the supports. It opened in 2011 and was the first direct road link between the island and the mainland; prior to that time, passengers traveling with cars would have to take a ferry. Daema-do is also connected to the mainland by the Daema-Do North Railway Tunnel, which opened in 1998, and the Daema-Do South Railway Tunnel, which opened in 2004. These have total lengths of 18.5 and 25.3 kilometers, respectively.
Car Ownership
In general, and especially since the 2000s, the Menghean government has sought to reduce the use and ownership of cars in urban areas. Relevant measures have included high parking space registration fees and taxes on car purchases; gasoline taxes in particular are considerably higher in the city than in the surrounding countryside, a measure which is also intended to reduce lines at the city’s relatively few gas stations. According to policy statements by the central government, these policies are aimed at controlling noise and air pollution and reducing the city’s notorious traffic jams.
During the 1990s, when the economic boom was still in its early stages, expanding districts at the periphery were often built with bus and bicycle commutes in mind, and struggle with today’s volume of cars. In many busy districts, bicycle lanes have been painted over to make room for additional traffic or parking space, and they are sometimes used illegally for these roles during peak traffic. The massive boom in metro construction was partly intended to correct this, and it was accompanied by steeper increases in gasoline prices within the city and a “public transportation together” city ad campaign. During major events and diplomatic visits, the municipal government has resorted to tighter restrictions, such as forbidding cars with even- and odd-numbered license plates to drive on alternating days.
In 2008, the municipal government declared its intention to make the Old City a “bicycle-friendly area.” This involved re-paving several major roads to incorporate bike paths separate from traffic, and converting some popular shopping streets into pedestrian-only zones. Despite positive national and foreign attention, the move attracted opposition from many locals, who complained that it would increase car traffic by removing automobile lanes.
Alternative Fuels
In 2011, the Donggyŏng municipal government unveiled a multi-stage plan to build a network of refueling stations for hydrogen-powered vehicles throughout the city, eventually expanding them to major roads along the surrounding countryside. This plan was apparently drawn up in competition with the city of Sunju, which had started work on a similar plan the previous year. While the initial city-center stations were built on schedule, followed by a few stations along the main outbound expressways, the municipal government suspended future work on the initiative in 2015. In March 2016, city officials at a press conference stated that they would continue to operate the existing hydrogen infrastructure as a trial project, but indicated that the central government was leaning more heavily toward electric as the future mode of car power.
Trains
History and Construction
The first railroad in Menghe was built in 1877 and ran from Donggyŏng’s freight docks around the western edge of the city to the city of Dongrŭng, from which it turned north and continued west to Hwaju. Today, the city’s main passenger line traces that route. The oldest and largest train stations are Donggyŏng City Station to the west of the Old City, and Sinsuk Station to the north of Bingang district. Both of these offer intercity service to surrounding cities and are major hubs connecting to surrounding metro lines.
At the time of construction, the main line ran around the outskirts of the city, so it was built at ground level. During the following century, the city began to expand around the tracks, which had initially relied on at-grade crossings. This choked off access to car and pedestrian traffic, or at best forced long detours to tunnels and overpasses, and created a heightened danger of accidents.
For a brief period in the early 1990s, the government debated building an elevated line alongside the entire metropolitan rail route and then closing and demolishing the old one. In the end, it dismissed the proposal as excessively expensive, especially because at the time the new line would have to have been strong enough to support heavy freight traffic. Instead, the government dug away at either side of the high track bed and built numerous road tunnels underneath it, forming the appearance of a low elevated rail seated atop a low reinforced wall of dirt and concrete. Along a brief stretch south of Donggyŏng City Station they took the opposite approach, reinforcing the earthworks dug around the tracks and building road bridges overhead. As a result, there are no longer any at-grade crossings on passenger lines within the Donggyŏng metropolitan area, though these are still common on industrial spurs, the northern freight bypass line, and passenger rail lines outside the city.
Freight Trains
As built, the city's first rail line carried a mix of passenger and freight trains, with an emphasis on the latter. Over the course of the following century, and especially during the 1990s, passenger and freight usage rapidly increased, causing cascading delays. In 1995 the municipal government laid a second set of rails alongside the existing ones, creating a dedicated separate line for freight. Yet this was a temporary solution at best, and after the passenger lines were converted from diesel to electric power, freight companies began to complain that the overhead wires limited clearance, preventing the use of double-stacked well cars and the transport of oversize cargo.
In 2004 the government completed a “freight relief line” which ran north of the airport and wrapped around the city’s inland outskirts. The new line, with no catenaries, a higher loading gauge, and overhead clearance for double-stacked well cars along its entire length, opened in 2005, greatly reducing traffic and improving travel times. It also freed up an extra set of parallel rails within the city, which had once served as the freight conduit. In 2005, the city government converted this to an express line for intercity and commuter passenger trains, and reopened the original passenger line for slower, frequent-stop Metrotrains.
Gyŏngnam still uses a trunked train system similar to Donggyŏng’s 1995-2005 arrangement, with three pairs of parallel track: express, metrotrain, and freight. The freight line remains on the south side for the entire in-city course, and bypasses the platforms at Gyŏngnam Station; because of this arrangement, it does not pass underneath overhead wires and can carry well cars and other large loads. It also serves the lightest volume of the city’s freight lines, with most inbound and outbound Gyŏngnam freight following the eastern bypass line to North Donghae province.
Passenger Trains
With the completion of the relief lines for freight, the original lines were converted exclusively to passenger service. The separate parallel freight lines were subsequently electrified and are now used to separate express and frequent-stop trains into “lanes” of track. To aid in this distinction, passenger trains in the Donggyŏng metropolitan area are classified into five categories based on their type of service: High speed, Intercity, Local, Commuter, and Metrotrain.
High Speed Trains
High speed trains from Donggyŏng offer non-stop service between major cities, and stop at Donggyŏng Station in the west of the city. The northbound line leads directly to Chŏngpo, a popular tourist destination, while the southbound line branches off to Ryongsŏng and Dongrŭng. All three of these lines continue onward to other destinations, linking to the rest of the country’s high-speed rail network.
Donggyŏng’s first high-speed train line opened in 2006, and runs on a separate set of track west of the existing parallel lines. To allow higher top speeds, this track is built with continuous welded rail and has gentler rises and curves than some of the older sections. It uses standard-gauge track and draws power from overhead wires, like the city’s other railway lines, but is completely separated from them to reduce traffic interference from slower intercity and other trains. All three of these high-speed rail lines operate at a top speed of 300 kilometers per hour.
Intercity Trains
Donggyŏng is also served by intercity trains (도시 간 열차, Dosi-gan Yŏlcha), which run at lower speeds. Unlike the high speed lines, these stop at Sinsuk Station in the north and Gyŏngnam Station across the Kimhae Sea, in addition to Donggyŏng Station itself. Though slower than their high-speed counterparts, intercity passenger trains are also cheaper, making them more affordable for working-class customers. Nearly all intercity trains in the Donggyŏng area use double-decker cars with doors at platform level and the bottom floor lowered closer to the tracks. These trains are sufficiently compact to use existing tunnels and overhead wires. Most feature handicapped seating in the mid-level boarding area.
Local Trains
Lines classified as local trains (보통 열차, Botong Yŏlcha) are analogous to regional rail services and connect small cities and towns in the countryside. Usually, they do not offer service all the way into a metropolitan area, instead stopping at a transfer station just within the city limits. Unlike Commuter trains, they are meant to handle regular travel rather than commuter traffic, and do not run at rush hour. Otherwise, they use similar rolling stock to commuter trains, and serve the same stations.
Commuter Trains
Commuter trains (통근 열차, Tonggŭn Yŏlcha) are lines that radiate out from the city center to the main outlying towns. There are five main commuter lines in the area, of which the Kimhae Line is the most heavily used. They are most active at rush hour, but also run less frequently during the day and on weekends. They use the same overhead wires as intercity trains, usually share track with them, and run at the same speed. Unlike intercity trains, however, they are all single-decker designs, a measure intended to reduce dwell time at minor stations. Unlike metrotrains and underground metro lines, however, they emphasize seating over standing room.
Originally, commuter trains stopped at all stations within the city limits, dropping off commuters closest to their destination. But with the restructuring of in-city rail lines after a freight bypass opened in 2005, commuter train schedules were revised: they now run express service once inside urban areas, only stopping at Gyŏngnam Station, Donggyŏng Station, or Sinsuk Station (depending on the line). From these hubs, passengers can take metro lines or metrotrains closer to their destination.
Metrotrains
Metropolitan trains (도시 열차, Dosi Yŏlcha), usually abbreviated on English signs as metrotrains, are a form of rapid transit and function as elevated or street-level metro lines. They run parallel to the intercity lines, but on a separate track, so that they do not interfere with faster high-speed traffic. In Donggyŏng proper the metrotrain tracks are to the southeast of bundled routes, while in Gyŏngnam they are to the northwest, allowing platforms to be built at the outer side of the bundled track rather than in the middle. Where they are required to cross intercity lines, metrotrain lines cross over or under, to further reduce interference with intercity and especially high-speed trains.
Metrotrains also differ in using similar rolling stock as the city’s subway system, with fewer seats, more standing room, and four exits per car to handle rush hour crowds. The main difference is that they are powered by overhead wires like other passenger trains, rather than a third rail like underground trains. They are also longer, to handle the greater volume of passengers on long metrotrain routes. Metrotrains are included in the city’s metro line numbering system (as Lines 4, 11, and 13), but are run by a different public-private company.
Sprinter Train
A unique exception to this classification is the Sprinter Train (주자 열차, Juja Yŏlcha), a single line which only stops at Kimhae International Airport, Gyŏngnam Station, Donggyŏng Station, and Sinsuk Station. It runs on the express line alongside intercity and commuter traffic, bypassing metrotrain stations, and was originally geared toward people who needed to travel between Kimhae International Airport and Donggyŏng proper.
Stations
The Donggyŏng Metropolitan Area has three main train stations: Donggyŏng Station (also called Donggyŏng City Station) in the west, Sinsuk Station in the center-north, and Gyŏngnam Station in the south. These are the only stations that serve intercity passenger trains. Of the three, Donggyŏng Station is the only one that serves high-speed rail. In addition to these major hubs, the area also has a large number of minor stations. Those in the city center serve metrotrains exclusively; intercity and high-speed trains follow a parallel set of tracks that bypass the platform. Outside the formal city limits, smaller stations strung along passenger lines serve commuter trains, which run on the express track once they enter the city. Here, intercity and commuter trains share the same track and run at the same speed.
Donggyŏng Station is the oldest of the three, and originally served as one of the nation’s first passenger railway stations, opening in 1877. It was steadily expanded over the years, but was almost entirely rebuilt between 2004 and 2006 to accommodate increased passenger traffic and add dedicated platforms for high-speed rail. This stage of reconstruction added ten dual-side platforms, a new waiting area above the tracks, and a separate exit path beneath. It also overhauled the security system on intercity and high-speed lines, requiring that passengers submit to a baggage scan on arrival and adding ticket checks at the access stairs to each platform. Similar measures were added to other stations around the country in the following years. Donggyŏng Station includes transfers to Metro Line 1 and Metrotrain Line 4, and will include a transfer to Line 18 when it opens later in 2014.
Sinsuk Station is the newest, built in 1997 to replace the small and poorly maintained Donggyŏng North Station. It was the largest in the city until Donggyŏng Station’s renovated section opened in 2006, and it still serves most low-speed intercity trains and commuter trains. It underwent less comprehensive expansion in 2008, mostly to take up additional intercity lines and upgrade security measures. The municipal government has discussed plans to make it an additional terminal for high-speed rail traffic, but as of yet there have been no definitive projects in this direction, as it would require extending dedicated high-speed track through a busy part of the city. It has metro transfers to Lines 1, 4, and 5, and will also have a transfer to Line 18.
Gyŏngnam Station opened in 1924, and remains the smallest of the three today, serving some intercity traffic to take up excess capacity at the major stations and serving as the terminal for the Donghae North Coast commuter line. It has transfers to Lines 11 and 12, as well as the Sprinter train, which connects all three major train stations and Kimhae International Airport.
Metro
Donggyŏng’s aboveground train system is accompanied by an extensive rapid transit system known as the Donggyŏng Metro (Menghean: 동경 도시철도, Donggyŏng Dosichŏldo). It includes the rapid transit infrastructure of Gyŏngnam proper, which was merged into Donggyŏng’s metro system in 2011. At the end of 2016, the Donggyŏng Metro had a system length of 466.5 kilometers, with 17 lines serving 308 stations. The longest line is the metrotrain Line 4 at 67.2 kilometers, though the longest continuous underground line was Line 10 at 45.4 kilometers. The shortest is the 8.7-kilometer Line 15, which runs through East Sinsuk District. Over the course of 2016, the system recorded 2.2 billion metro trips, averaging a little over 6 million per day. This makes it one of the largest metro systems in Septentrion, though still slightly behind the Menghean city of Sunju. As part of the “20-20-20” construction plan, it expanded rapidly from 2008 onward, and construction is currently underway on three more lines that run through the city center.
History
Menghe’s first underground metro line, opened in 1974, was a stretch of Line 1 running from Donggyŏng Station through the Old City to the south tip of Bingang. In 1978 this was extended all the way north to Sinsuk Station, and in 1981 to Donggyŏng Capital Airport. The following year, the city opened Line 2, which intersected Line 1 in an “X” arrangement and ran westward along the coast. These two lines together mainly served to carry new arrivals into the center of the city, and workers from the residential districts to the port and industrial park. By the middle of the 1980s, planning had begun on a third line connecting these two in a secant arrangement, but the economic crisis of the late 1980s and the Decembrist Coup of 1987 put these on hold indefinitely.
In the early 1990s, the city government did resume work on the new metro project, which opened as Line 3 in 1994. For the next ten years, it did not lay any new metro lines, though it did extend the existing tracks and rebuild Line 1 stations to accept longer and faster trains.
The complete re-routing of freight around the city in 2004 left a “free” set of tracks alongside the existing conduit, and over the course of the following year the municipal government re-routed passenger trains onto the old freight line, turning the old passenger line into the city’s first aboveground “metrotrain.” Measuring 67.2 kilometers in length after subsequent extensions, it is currently one of the longest metro lines in the world. Line 5 opened the following year, followed by Line 6 in 2008.
Over the course of the next decade, the city experienced a boom in subway construction, averaging one and a half new lines per year. In 2011 the municipal economic planning board announced an ambitious “20-20-20” plan, which aimed to have twenty operational metro lines in the city by the year 2020. In 2012 it connected Line 3 and Gyŏngnam Line 1 to the Taekje Transit Center, absorbing the small Gyŏngnam metro system into the Donggyŏng Metro and renaming the former’s Lines 1 and 2 to Lines 12 and 11 respectively. Line 17 opened to regular traffic on June 1, 2016, forming the newest addition to the system.
Future plans for the system include Line 18, an “express” line following alongside Line 1 but only stopping at major stations, and Lines 19 and 20, which will run through the area north of Bingang and link the current parallel outgoing lines before themselves proceeding to the outskirts. There are also plans to continue extending existing metro lines further into the suburbs and outskirts. Also planned for 2020 is a new circle line running around the northern outskirts, which will re-use the number 8 as the previous Line 8 was merged into Line 9 in 2011. Possible plans beyond 2020 include additional feeder lines in the southwestern suburbs and extensions of existing lines north of the city.
In the early 2010s the municipal government flirted with the idea of an underwater express line dug under the Kimhae Sea, to bring travelers directly from Kimhae International Airport to Bingang. Interest in the project initially dropped after the "Sprinter" train came into service, but it has revived in recent years, especially after the proven success of mechanical tunnel boring machines in digging more recent lines.
Stations
The Donggyŏng metro system is renowned for its cleanliness and timeliness, and since 2010 its management has embarked on a campaign to make it more user-friendly to foreigners. In keeping with Menghean cartographic practice, all station names are displayed in both the Sinmun and Gumun alphabets of the Menghean language. This is meant to help distinguish between locations that have similar pronunciations but different meanings. Translations are also available in English, using the state-mandated transliteration system for place names. A few major stations, most notably the spacious transfer station at Bugae, feature additional facilities such as underground shops and restaurants. All platforms have LED displays listing the times at which the next five trains will arrive. As a mandatory safety measure, all stations have light-up signs and in some cases LED paths pointing to the exits, so that in the event of a power outage or fire the occupants can find their way to safety.
Since January 2005, all stations on the Donggyŏng metro have incorporated security checks just beyond the entrance. These consist of a metal detector door or guard with a metal detector wand for passengers, and a scanning machine for bags. During times of high threat – for instance, after a terror threat is intercepted or during major events – security can be increased with extra personnel to conduct bag searches and pat-down checks. These measures were implemented after a terrorist on Line 2 of the Emil-Si metro killed six people and injured eleven others using a serrated knife concealed within his clothing.
All stations on lines 5 and above use platform screen doors made of acrylic glass. In 2002 the municipal government retrofitted waist-high metal railings with slide-open gates to stations on Lines 1, 2, and 3, and in the years since then it has refurbished most of these stations to have fully enclosed platform screen doors. Only metrotrains do not feature platform screen doors. Studies conducted by the municipal department of transportation also found that these doors improved pedestrian traffic flow at peak travel times, especially when combined with signs on the ground instructing passengers to wait at the side of either door and allow others to exit along the center.
In 2009, a woman attempting to board a packed train on Line 3 was crushed to death after being caught between the train and platform doors as the train began to move. Popular criticism blamed the platform doors, and an online petition to remove them from all stations was circulated for several hours the next day before being shut down by the government. Metro officials defended the use of platform screen doors, arguing that the accident was a rare twist of fate and that the doors had saved an even greater number of lives by preventing slips, suicides, and pushing in crowds. Eventually the municipal government gave in to pressure by requiring additional safety measures to keep doors from closing on a passenger, but the Menghe Government in Exile has accused the Menghean regime of covering up additional safety violations and accidents.
Track Infrastructure
All Donggyŏng rapid transit, including both underground metro lines and aboveground Metrotrains, runs on standard-gauge 1435mm track. The rest of the country’s railway system uses this gauge as well, allowing metro cars to be shipped into the city via freight rail. On all underground lines and the elevated portion of Line 7, the train derives power from an upward-facing 750-V third rail. The exceptions are metrotrains on Lines 4, 11, and 13, which use the same overhead wires as other passenger trains. All metro cars and metrotrains run on the right-hand track.
The busiest Donggyŏng metro lines are being upgraded with moving-block CBTC signaling systems, which continuously measure the distance between trains to allow greater safety at close spacing. During a testing period trains on Line 1 have been able to achieve headways as low as 90 seconds with this system, but on most lines headway is limited to 120 seconds to prevent minor delays from cascading up the system. Thus far, the upgrade has been fitted to Lines 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 8, and there are plans to retrofit it to Lines 9, 10, and 12. It will also be included in Lines 18, 19, and 20 when they open.
Rolling Stock
All trains currently serving on the Donggyŏng metro follow a standardized general design, with four double doors on either side. The large number of doors is meant to help passengers reach their exit in a packed train at rush hour. These doors are spaced at the same intervals on all train models, to ensure that they line up with platform screen doors at stations.
Most underground Donggyŏng metro lines operate six-car sets, and have a top speed of 80 kilometers per hour. The exceptions are Lines 9, 15, and 17, which operate four-car sets, and Line 10, which operates eight-car sets. When it opens, Line 18 will run eight-car sets with a top speed of 100 kilometers per hour. All Metrotrains run at top speeds of 110 kilometers per hour, with Lines 4 and 11 operating nine-car sets.
Currently, all Donggyŏng metro cars include a map of their Line with LED lights at each station mark. These indicate the next station, the direction of travel, and whether any stations are closed. As the train approaches a station, additional signs display the name of the next station and the side on which doors will open. Recorded announcements relay the same information in Mengheo and English.
In 2014, Line 1 was upgraded with free WiFi and 4G LTE on all trains and stations, allowing passengers to make calls and access internet while traveling. A similar upgrade was applied to Line 3 in 2016, and it is rumored that Lines 18, 19, and 20 will feature these services when they open. There are official plans to refit WiFi and 4G coverage to all lines and stations by 2025, but thus far the municipal government has focused on new construction and has avoided setting hard deadlines for wireless implementation.
Buses
During the 1990s and 2000s, buses were the core of Donggyŏng’s public transit system, and alongside bicycles they are considered symbols of the city’s early growth. Following the rapid expansion of the metro system, however, buses have declined in importance, as many areas in the city center are already well-served by metro stations. At times, the municipal government has cancelled, re-routed, or scaled back bus lines that are redundant with new metro lines, though it still sees buses as an important tool to move commuters at rush hour when the metro lines are operating at full capacity.
City buses in the greater Donggyŏng area come in three types. “Metro Buses” are painted light blue and offer regular service in urban areas, often with the aim of funneling passengers to metro stops and major transit centers or to areas where the metro lines are not as well-developed. All of these are run by the municipal government. “Sprinter Buses” are painted red and offer express service between major residential and commercial or industrial areas, and are privately owned. “Rural Buses,” painted green and publicly owned, operate on the far outskirts of the city, and are the main means of access for small farming communities not connected to regional rail networks.
Most buses are single-level and low-floor, though a few of the longer express lines use double-decker buses. All have two sets of doors, so that passengers enter through the forward door, pay with coins or card beside the driver, then file back to their seat, exiting through the rear door at their stop. Between 1992 and 2011, the city operated articulated buses on a few major routes, but these have all been retired. Since 2012, the city has introduced hybrid, electric, and CNG-powered buses, and is currently assessing these options over the intermediate term to see which can be expanded to serve its entire City Bus service. Most of the buses currently in service are not handicapped-accessible, but nearly all of the new models are capable of “kneeling” and extending ramps to accept wheelchairs.
In addition to commuter buses, the city also has a number of tourist buses, all of which are run by private companies. Most of these are active in the Old City area, though some also run in Bingang. A few of these services drop off tour groups at major sites and circle back later to pick them up.
Water Transport
Passengers
There are several ferry lines serving the Kimhae Sea area, with the two major ones transporting passengers from Bingang to the Central Docks and to Daema-do (the large island east of the sea’s mouth). The latter is capable of transporting cars as well as passengers. There is also an “Airport Sea Express” which runs directly from Kimhae International Airport to Bugae Transit Center on Bingang Island; it uses small, fast boats, which dock in the covered canal between the airport and the mainland.
Apart from these, most modern ferry traffic in the Kimhae Sea is for sightseeing. The southern tip of Bingang Island, with its famous skyline of tall buildings, is particularly popular, as is the coast of the Old City. The Menghean line Harmony Cruises often docks ships in the city as part of its Donghae Coast and Great Northeast tours, but mainly treats the city as an origin point rather than a destination.
Freight
Greater Donggyŏng handles largest volume of container shipping of any Menghean city, surpassing even Sunju. It is the favored loading site for freight rail lines stretching to North Donghae province and the northern interior, both of which are major centers of heavy industry. The main container terminals are located on opposing sides of the Kimhae Sea in Donggyŏng proper and in Gyŏngnam. These ports were dramatically expanded in the 1990s and 2000s, with large straightened quays and artificial islands allowing increased space for container ships. Several of these quays have been extensively dredged alongside, allowing them to serve ultra-large container ships and bulk carriers.
These quays also feature a large number of industrial spurs and smaller sidings, allowing terminal personnel to directly load containers and other cargo onto freight trains. In both cases, the ports and industrial parks lie to the northeast of the main urban area, but most freight is bound to the southwest, which posed a challenge for railway traffic until new bypass lines were opened.
Taxis
Taxis in Donggyŏng, like their counterparts in other Menghean cities, follow a standardized color scheme, painted orange overall with a thick white stripe running up the hood and along each side. All vehicles are metered and carry a sign labeled “택시” (Taegsi) on the roof, which lights up when the vehicle is empty. One may hail a taxi at any location on the street, and request a destination anywhere within the city limits. In 2010, the city government installed card reader machines in city cabs; these can accept credit, debit, and Transit cards (see above). Since 2015, it has also experimented with electronic hailing software, though this is currently only installed on about 40% of Donggyŏng cabs.
During the initial round of decollectivization in the late 1980s, the state broke up public taxi companies in Donggyŏng and opened the market to small businesses (소기업, Sogiŏb). Taxis run by their own drivers, often painted in a variety of colors and liveries, formed the backbone of the city’s taxi system in the 1990s. In 2001, however, the city government moved to curtail “personal taxi companies” out of concern for passengers’ safety, imposing a centralized licensing program and strict regulations. A 2003 amendment outlawed private, express, and luxury taxi companies, including personal chauffeurs, though it did not apply this to company cars registered to government agencies and public-private enterprises. Since the laws went into place, most Donggyŏng taxis have fallen back under the control of state-run companies.
In 2014, the government interpreted this law to prevent the international ride-sharing company Uber from operating in the country. The official court decision cited concerns over lax licensing procedures and insufficient employee benefits. Uber and other companies complained that the ruling was building unfair protection into the domestic market. The following year, the Menghean public-private electronics conglomerate Sinsegye released a taxi-hailing app which matches customers to the nearest free cab, lending credence to these claims.
Fares and Payment
Daesu card
In 2007 the city introduced the Daesu card (short for 대량 수송, Daeryang Susong, “mass transit”). This is a rechargeable electronic card used to pay transportation fares in the Donggyŏng metropolitan area. Initially limited to subways, buses, and regional and commuter trains, in 2010 they were also expanded to taxi services. Passengers must swipe it once when entering the platform or boarding the bus, and again when exiting, at which point it deducts a variable charge from the balance based on the distance traveled and the mode of transport used. Active military personnel, wounded veterans, individuals over the age of 65, Civil Security officers, and small children accompanied by an adult can ride for free, provided that they are carrying relevant ID. The card can be purchased at any metro station for ₩1000 and recharged at machines in metro and train stations using cash or credit or debit cards. People who create an online account using a Citizen ID can also add value online at http://www.daesupe.su/chungjon and have access to a variety of other special features, including the ability to apply for long-range-commuter discounts.
Beginning with in 2009 with Chŏngpo, several other Menghean cities have integrated the Daesu card into their public transportation systems, sometimes as a new introduction and sometimes alongside or replacing existing card-based payment methods. In 2015 the central government’s Bureau of Transportation standardized the Daesu card as the country’s official electronic payment method for public transportation, requiring that it replace alternative card payment methods but still leaving cash-only or ticket-only payment as valid options in less developed districts. Theoretically, a Donggyŏng resident can fly to Szantiag at the far side of the country and still use their personal Daesu card to pay bus or trolley fare there.
Other Forms of Payment
Prior to the introduction of the Daesu card, riders had to pay with cash, either buying a ticket from a desk at the relevant station for metro lines or depositing coins in a box on board the bus. In 2011 the municipal government eliminated the single-ticket option, instead asking that new passengers purchase a temporary Daesu card. This can be purchased at station information desks for a ₩100 deposit, which is refunded upon return of the card with valid receipt. Passengers can load a temporary card with money at regular recharging stations, and swipe it on entry and exit. City buses still accept coin payment dispensed on boarding, but this is becoming rare in urban areas.
Passengers can also purchase a Donggyŏng Visitor Card, which offers unlimited bus, metro, and metrotrain transit within the city limits for three, ten, or thirty days after first use (depending on the option selected). These are sold at discounted rates at the city’s airports and major train stations, but can also be purchased for the full price at metro and metrotrain stations.
Penalties and Enforcement
If a rider’s Daesu card is not swiped out within three hours of being swiped in, it automatically deducts a fine of ₩100 for metro lines or metrotrains or ₩500 for local or commuter railways. Fines can be higher if the Daesu card is used on intercity trains. City police regularly board metro lines and trains to check that passengers have paid for access, and will charge even higher fines for lacking valid tickets or inactive cards.
Other
In addition to its many metro and train lines, the greater Donggyŏng Metropolitan Area has two funicular railways at the city outskirts, one east of Donggyŏng proper and one southwest of Gyŏngnam. Both are primarily tourist attractions, and carry visitors to the peaks of low mountains overlooking the city.