Public Transporation : Perception vs. Reality

Walking would suck but you can drive.

from JoeUser Forums

     During my 14 years in the Army I always heard about how great two nation’s public transit systems were: and .

 

     I heard how wonderful the subway system of was. I heard stories about the train system that would “take you anywhere easy!” in . I heard these stories from soldiers who had lived there and used the system but strangely almost all of these soldiers lived in the barracks while they were there. Hmmm… how odd.

 

     I had the opportunity to check out the public transportation system in firsthand since my very first tour was there. They have extensive busing networks, subways, and a nationwide train system. It all sucks ass.

 

     My first trip in was on a chartered bus from to Pyongtaek. The bus was slow, fairly dirty, and either too hot or too cold depending on the bus driver’s mood. In other words it was like a bus trip in almost any country.

 

     I didn’t hit the subway in until after an excruciating trip to via the national rail system. The ticket was cheap but that was because it doesn’t guarantee you a seat on the train. I am my friends stood while this train went from Pyongtaek to stopping at every podunk town in between. It doesn’t matter how fast the train goes in between stops because of the very long stop time and acceleration time at each place. The trip took hours and was spent packed in like sardines. Seriously, it was standing room only the whole way.

 

     This applies eventually to almost any train line. The line might start out as an “express” line between two distant points with no stops in between but it is only a matter of time before smaller points along the route petition and bitch their way into being a stop too. Eventually your “express” line is just as slow as the other lines are.

 

     Once we got to we transferred to the subway system and it was somewhat less packed but still just as dirty. Additionally, the network is bafflingly complex (even when you speak the language) and going from one point to another usually involves multiple transfers. From Pyongtaek to our destination in took around 4 hours for a trip that encompassed about 100 km or so. Not good, but it only cost about 8 dollars per person. Meh.

 

      When I went back to I was authorized to have a car and never looked back. The worst days in Seoul traffic were better than the best trips I had using the public system and they usually cost me less in gasoline especially if there were 3 or more people in my car. Additionally if you have ever tried buying a bunch of stuff from any of ’s great shopping districts and then humped them over a 4 hours trek of the public transportation system you will appreciate having a car with a trunk.

 

     On to : I loved . I was actually angry with the Army when I got there after being stuck in for so many years. is incredible. It has great food, great beer, incredible wine, wonderful shopping and culture, and a shitty train system. Let me explain.

 

     We had a rental car and Pseudosoldier was our driver. He wasn’t all that confident about driving in but did a great job (after the SpielBank incident anyways). When we decided to try and catch a German version of the Renaissance fest at a castle though we decided that:

  1. We didn’t want to risk the drive.

  1. We had too many people for one car to seat comfortably since the Bourbon Biker was coming along.

And

  1. Pseudo wanted to be able to drink freely.

     So we decided to take the train system we had heard so much about. What an error in judgment that was. We bought tickets that would take right where we wanted to go at about 13-15 Euros apiece (around 17 bucks at the time so 5x17 = 85 USD for 5 people) and boarded the train in . From we went to (which was about a 10 minute drive) and waited for a transfer to our next train for about 40 minutes.  

 

     Once on that train we waited for our stop… and waited…. and waited… I hadn’t thought it possible for a train to move more slowly or stop more often than the ones in but this one certainly did. Additionally the stops were not announced or listed in the same way that the tickets said they were. Consequently we were on the train for almost 3 hours and missed our stop.

 

     We got off and figured out that after 3 hours of travel we were in . Acquiring a map we were a bit shocked to find that is just on the other side of (maybe 20-25 more minutes in a car tops (look for yourself)). Our stop was supposed to be a small town between Fulda and Frankfurt. We could have driven there in less than 30 minutes for about 5 dollars worth of gas round trip!

 

     After shopping and drinking in for a few hours (in the rain) we decided to get 2 cabs and head back to . The cabs combined cost us about 60 dollars and took us right back to the base in 30-35 minutes.

     Bottom line? The train was 5 times slower than cabbing or driving and between 17 and 1.5 times as expensive.

 

     Now I knew many Koreans who spoke wondrously about their public system but they all had one thing in common. They didn’t know how to drive and didn’t own their own car. The Koreans who did own a car and who had learned to drive used their cars almost exclusively even with the outrageously expensive gas prices there (they tax the hell out of gas just like does).

 

     The soldiers who told the stories? Well most either never had a car in or were really reciting a “party line” they had heard endlessly from their language instructors. The public system was great if your only other choice was walking.

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Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top
Best public transportation I've ever used (with a qualifier) was in Chicago. The trains are great. You can get around quicker by train than by car much of the time.

BUT...the busses suck a**, and if you wind up using only train traffic you could end up being a white guy humping your ass through Cabrini Green and hoping like hell you don't die like I did (they really should warn people about these places on city maps!)

All in all, public transit can be a good thing but only in moderation (no better way to get to a Cubs game, baby!)
Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top

I spent 2 years in Germany - without a license (I was 16 and 17 and you had to be 18).  My only other experience with mass transit was San Francisco.  I must say I had good experiences in both places, and did not experience the delays you did.  But then both places were before I was driving, so perhaps that did color my view.

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Reply #3 from JoeUser Forums Top
But then both places were before I was driving, so perhaps that did color my view.


That's why public transportation doesn't work in America or for Americans the way it seems to be more than adequate for people from other countries and backgrounds. What has been the credo of the US since the end of WWII? Convenience and consumerism. While I'm not saying either of these things are bad, they certainly contribute to the average American's distaste for public transportation, because a)it's so much easier and faster to drive oneself; and b)I've gotta gotta gotta have that badass new car!
Reply #4 from JoeUser Forums Top
Which is why public transportation works better in places like Chicago. Because you'll stop thinking convenience the first time you have to spend 30 minutes just looking for a downtown parking spot. Many people WITH cars park at the various "Park and Rides" precisely to avoid such hassles.
Reply #5 from JoeUser Forums Top
Which is why public transportation works better in places like Chicago. Because you'll stop thinking convenience the first time you have to spend 30 minutes just looking for a downtown parking spot. Many people WITH cars park at the various "Park and Rides" precisely to avoid such hassles.


Such is not the case in the West, especially places like Utah, New Mexico and Arizona. You drive everywhere, and if you do choose to use public transportation (as I did when I lived farther away from the Uni I'm attending) you're maligned and made fun of.
Reply #6 from JoeUser Forums Top
My experience was that Japan had the best, Switzerland next and Germany a close third. Using "Public Transportation" requires an adjustment in attitude for sure. Us westerners don't want to give up that freedom of motion for a bus bench. But, if the attitude is adjusted, the buses and rails are a great place to learn about a country and it's people. Way back in the olden days the Army used to run duty trains all over Europe and they were fun, too.
Reply #7 from JoeUser Forums Top
I for one loved the public transport in Korea. And I owned a car. Well, it was sort of a car. The sort that would make you ask the driver to stop so you could get out. But I digress... The benefits of the Korean public transport were pretty much that you wouldn't have to worry about driving. One could feel very smart after having navigated successfully the labrynth of the Seoul Underground. Plus one could play that old game of trying to blend in with the crowd...
Reply #8 from JoeUser Forums Top
Grey, it is truly a rare occassion. I actually disagree with you. I really LOVED most of the public transportation in Korea. When I was in college over there, I could have acquired a car had I really wanted to, but it just wasn't worth it. I can tell you that the system of 2000 is by far superior to the system of 1994, when we got over there. For one thing, the Pidulgi train (the crappy one that stopped at every podunk), is no longer in service. They got rid of it in the mid 90's, followed shortly by the Tong-il service, which was little better. What used to be the upper-middle class train (the Mugunghwa), is now the lowest level of train. It is still packed, and the cars still smell a bit, but they are WAY better than the old trains we used to ride. I haven't been on the KTX yet, but it is supposed to be pretty sweet as well.

As for the subway in Seoul, the four oldest lines still have dirty-ish, run-down stations, but they have put all new signage up across the system, and it is very easy to get around now (especially with the added lines).

I'd say the worst part is the buses. I don't particularly dislike riding the buses. In fact, I enjoyed it for the most part. They weren't always the cleanest, but you could usually find a seat on the inter-city buses, and on the local buses, trips weren't usually that long. I made it through TONS of books riding the bus between Suwon and Seoul. The part I absolutely hated....? Figuring out which freakin' bus to take. In 4 years, I have yet to find a comprehensive bus map for the city of Seoul. I can find out where any particular bus is going, by walking up to a bus stop for that bus line (it will show the names of the stops, but not a map with the locations....bastards). But I have never seen a full city map showing all of the lines.....ever. If they were able to fix that little problem, I'd be even happier.

The transport is one of the reasons I've considered going back to work. I know that if I spent another year or two working in Korea, I'd be able to make it through the backlog of 50+ books I have sitting on my bookshelf waiting for me. Plus, I wouldn't deal with the stress of traffic (90 minutes today to go 13 miles...with 60 minutes spent going the first 3 miles on my commute home...).
Reply #9 from JoeUser Forums Top
Pseudo wanted to be able to drink freely.


Although I generally hold conservative views, I believe drinking should be done liberally.