Seoul, My Soul: The Journey Towards Inclusive and Innovative Transport
Mr Lee Jin-ku currently serves as the Director-General of the Transportation Planning Bureau at the Seoul Metropolitan Government. In this role, he oversees the full spectrum of Seoul’s transportation policies, including bus services, urban railways such as the metro and light rail transit (LRT), and future mobility initiatives such as autonomous driving and urban air mobility (UAM).
In this UITP Asia-Pacific Spotlight interview, Mr Lee Jin-ku gives his insights on his career in public transport, his views on good work culture, and delivering excellent service.
What inspired you to pursue a career in the public transport sector?
I joined the Seoul Metropolitan Government in 2008 and began my career in public transport in earnest when I became Team Leader of the Bus Policy Team in 2014. I was appointed Director of the Bus Policy Division and later Director of the Transportation Policy Division.
In these roles, I oversaw a wide range of transport policies relating to Seoul’s bus and rail networks and integrated fare system. The experience and expertise I gained along the way led me to my current position as Director-General of the Transportation Planning Bureau.
Public transport is one of the public services most closely connected to people’s daily lives. Millions of people use public transport every day for commuting to work and school, leisure, and other daily activities. Consequently, even a small change in transport policy can have a direct impact on their lives.
Moreover, public transport is much more than a means of moving people. It plays an important role in safeguarding people’s right to mobility, reducing traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions, and enhancing urban sustainability.
The opportunity to make tangible improvements to people’s daily lives while helping shape the future of Seoul is both my greatest motivation and the most rewarding aspect of continuing to work in the public transport sector.
Which aspect of your organisation’s work culture do you really look up to?
What I value most is our commitment to ensuring that everyone has access to high-quality transport services and enjoys the benefits of inclusive mobility, while continuously pursuing innovation through the active adoption of new technologies.
First and foremost, the greatest strength of Seoul’s transport system is that it promotes inclusive mobility by providing everyone with access to high-quality transport services, underpinned by its integrated fare and transfer system.
Seoul is also highly proactive in adopting future transport technologies. It has led IT-driven innovations such as smart transport cards and real-time transport information management. Today, Seoul is actively advancing the commercialization of autonomous bus services, including the world’s first late-night autonomous bus service.
We also devote considerable effort to creating an inclusive transport environment for people with reduced mobility. Seoul has continued to expand its fleet of low-floor buses and has established the “one accessible route per station” system, enabling passengers with reduced mobility to travel conveniently by elevator and other accessible facilities from street level to the platform at each metro station.
Through these policies, Seoul safeguards the right to mobility and promotes social equity by maintaining public transport fares that are among the lowest in the world while providing services of the highest quality.
How would you approach the increasing public expectation of faultless, seamless and efficient public transport?
To meet the public’s growing expectations, I believe our most fundamental responsibility is to maintain and provide a dense and reliable public transport network built around buses and railways.
Despite this extensive network, there will inevitably be underserved areas that lack adequate access to rail services. To address these gaps, Seoul is currently pursuing the development of seven new rail lines.
For bus services, we are also preparing to make the route network more efficient by taking into account changes in the city’s spatial layout and urban structure, as well as evolving lifestyles.
Seoul has promoted inclusive mobility by maintaining affordable fares through its integrated fare and transfer system. Going one step further, we operate the Climate Card to reduce the transport costs that people experience in their daily lives.