Seoul: The first batch of two ferry vessels arrived on Seoul's Han River on Thursday ahead of the city government's plan to launch a pilot water bus service next month, city officials said. The two vessels, Hangang Bus 101 and Hangang Bus 102, departed Monday from a shipbuilder in the southeastern port of Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, and reached Seoul's Yeouido area on Thursday morning after passing through the South Sea and the Yellow Sea, they said.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the vessels, which were launched in Sacheon last November, have passed the Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority's ship safety and performance tests. The Seoul government embarked on the water bus project last year, vowing to develop the service into a combination of a city landmark, a tourist product, and a means of water transportation that supplements land public transportation.
Under the Hangang Bus service, a total of eight ferry vessels will run every 15 minutes during the morning and evening rush hours along seven stops from Magok to Jamsil. The five other stops include Mangwon, Yeouido, Apgujeong, Oksu, and Ttukseom. The city government said the service will mark the beginning of an eco-friendly water transportation era, emphasizing that the water buses made of aluminum alloy can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 52 percent compared to existing diesel engine ships.
Each river bus, measuring 9.5 meters in width and 35 meters in length, can accommodate up to 199 passengers. The pilot operations of the two river buses will begin in early March, with their official operations expected to launch during the first half of this year, according to the city officials. The city government plans to improve the connectivity between the river buses and existing metropolitan transportation systems. It will also create new bus lines heading to the seven river bus docks and increase the supply of public bicycles there.