Seoul's Futuristic Metro

By Ravichandran D.J Paul SEOUL, Nov 14 (Bernama) -- One of the key features of any modern metropolis is its metro, namely the intra-city rail transport that makes travelling across the traffic-choked city a breeze. However, planning, implementing and maintaining a metro system is not only costly but also requires in-depth knowledge and expertise. This is especially so when there are different train systems making up the metro, like in Malaysia where the metro network comprises the MRT, LRT, ERL, monorail and KTM rail lines. Many of the metros of the world today are constantly finding ways to keep their maintenance cost and downtime of their rail assets at a minimum. Hence, excellent management practices, effective in-house maintenance and development of indigenous technologies are crucial for any metro operator. Though the metro system puts Malaysia’s capital city Kuala Lumpur on a par with many major cities of the world, the country has lots to learn in being innovative in managing and maintaining the system efficiently for the future. This is where Malaysia can learn from Seoul Metro that operates the metro system in South Korea’s capital city. A media team from Bernama recently visited Seoul Metro’s facilities, including the Gunja Rolling Stock Depot in Seoul, to take a look at the operations and systems employed to ensure the metro’s efficiency and reliability. The visit was on the invitation of the Korean Culture and Information Service (KOCIS). SEOUL METRO HAS COME A LONG WAY Seoul Metro was created in 2017 when Seoul Metro Corporation (operator of line 1-4) and Seoul Metropolitan Rapid Transit Corporation (operator of line 5-8) were merged, creating a single operator and setting a new benchmark for metro operations in South Korea. However, Seoul Metro is no ordinary operator of the metro system, as pointed out by its Rolling Stock Research Team general manager Chung Hangjae. It has been pushing the limits in modernising the whole metro line, including adopting digital transformation and the fourth Industrial Revolution. The people mover provides an efficient service for the city of 10 million people, and for another 15 million in the greater metropolitan areas of Seoul. Nearly 7.4 million passengers ride the Seoul metro daily, with the tracks covering a distance of 304 kilometres across the city and 282 stations in between. It records 71.4 million annual train operating hours with an on-time rate of 99.9 percent. The metro also has an admirable safety record, with one accident per 51,006,000 km. Over the years the company has gone through capacity building whereby it created a new paradigm shift in managing and maintaining the whole metro system, right from the trains to the station facilities. When the metro in Seoul started in the early 1970s, it depended on trains and technology from Japan, Britain and Germany. Chung said Seoul Metro has now developed its very own capabilities and even created a 'Smart Connect Metro' by incorporating AI (Artificial Intelligence), IOT(Internet of Things), Cloud and Big Data features into its trains and stations. Interestingly, Seoul Metro could achieve all this despite the tight capital funding from Seoul Metropolitan Council. Chung noted that rolling stocks have a lifespan of 25 to 30 years but some of those operated by the company are more than 40 years old, thanks to the expertise at hand. The service life of the rolling stocks has been vastly extended thanks to the company’s ability to localise the production of the trains’ spare parts, he added. NEW BENCHMARK IN METRO OPERATIONS The company has developed the Smart Connect Train Maintenance (SCTM) feature whereby the technicians need not have to wait for the train to break down to get it repaired. The trains’ operational data is monitored in real time and sent to the big data platform at the control centre to be analysed. In the event of a fault, the technical team at the control centre will be alerted in real time through the dashboard. Providing an example, Chung said it takes about 3.5 to 4.5 seconds for the train doors to close and the slightest delay, which even the commuters are unaware of, is captured by the system. The wheel wear and tear is also monitored in real time by monitoring the axle vibration – anything out of the ordinary will appear on the control centre’s dashboard. This contributes to preventive maintenance and avoids breakdowns when the trains are in service. The escalators, ventilators and the cooling, drainage and firefighting systems at the train stations are also monitored in real time through the Smart Automatic Mechanical Big Data Analysis (SAMBA) system. This keeps the facilities at the stations working optimally and ensures the comfort and safety of the commuters. Seoul Metro has amassed a vast body of knowledge on operational needs through research and experience, hence it even has the capability to set the specifications for the trains to be built by its local vendors. With so much know-how at its disposal, Chung said Seoul Metro is now ready to share its expertise with other metro operators of the world, including Malaysia. Recently, the corporation held a railway seminar in Malaysia as part of its efforts to provide education and training for Malaysian rail professionals and enable technical exchanges between both sides. Chung noted that rail operators like Malaysia's KTM Bhd (KTMB) can extend the service life of their rail assets and keep the maintenance cost down by producing spare parts that have been discontinued through localisation. KTMB can also learn to digitalise its operations and maintenance from Seoul Metro. GEARING UP THE MALAYSIAN METRO Meanwhile, Kim Junhyung, an engineer with Seoul Metro’s maintenance team who is in Malaysia to take a closer look at the country’s rail systems, said there are lots of opportunities for Malaysian rail operators like KTMB, Prasarana, ERL and others to work with Seoul Metro. They can work together in sharing knowledge and establishing research and development programmes to develop the rail sector in Malaysia. Though Malaysian rail operators have their own maintenance capabilities and resources, Junhyung believed they still can learn a lot in the localisation of train parts, refurbishment of trains and in developing advance rail ICT features like their Korean counterpart. In developing Malaysia’s own futuristic metro network, both the government and rail industry players have to think of the long-term and adapt or develop the technologies that suit them best and meet the aspiration of the commuters. Edited by Rema Nambiar -- BERNAMA