The operator held a joint prevention campaign with subway police at Sadang Station on Tuesday; of 492 criminal complaints filed over the past four years, 311 involved intoxicated passengers
Seoul Metro said Tuesday it held a joint campaign with the subway police unit at Sadang Station on Line 2 to prevent violence against station staff by intoxicated passengers and to promote a safer subway environment.
The campaign was organized in response to a growing pattern of verbal abuse and physical assault by drunk passengers, which has emerged as a leading threat to the safety of station workers. The operator said the event aimed to raise public awareness and foster a more considerate culture of public transit use.
Over the past four years, from 2023 to 2026, Seoul Metro filed a total of 492 criminal complaints involving verbal abuse and assault against its employees. Of those, 311 cases — 63 percent of the total — involved intoxicated passengers. Repeated incidents of threats, insults and physical attacks during customer interactions have taken a growing mental and physical toll on frontline staff.
The number of alcohol-related violence cases far exceeded other categories, including 110 cases involving crowd-control duties and 20 related to fare evasion enforcement.
The impact of drunk passenger violence extends beyond individual employees. Such incidents can cause disruption and conflict inside stations, heightening anxiety among other commuters, and can particularly hamper staff from responding swiftly in emergencies — posing a broader risk to public safety.
Seoul Metro selected Sadang Station — one of the busiest transfer points on the network — as the campaign site, where staff and subway police distributed safety guidelines for riding the subway after drinking and spread messages against verbal abuse and assault. The two organizations also conducted joint inspections of areas vulnerable to illegal filming, such as restrooms, and stepped up patrol activities.
Seoul Metro said it will continue working to establish a culture of mutual respect on public transit, noting that drunk passenger violence affects not only individual employees but also station operations and the safety of all riders.
"Verbal abuse and assault against station employees are behaviors that threaten the safety of other passengers, and we will apply a zero-tolerance policy when such incidents occur," said Ma Hae-geun, head of Seoul Metro's operations division. "We ask passengers to show consideration and respect for the employees who work tirelessly on the ground to keep the subway safe."
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
