Seoul mayor apologizes for marathon traffic chaos, vows to renegotiate next year's race

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has apologized for the traffic disruptions caused by a surge in downtown marathon events, saying he takes "seriously the frustration and inconvenience citizens experienced on a precious Sunday morning."

A large-scale marathon held in central Seoul last weekend drew widespread complaints on social media, with many residents reporting that trips normally taking 15 minutes stretched to more than an hour.

In a Facebook post Monday, Oh said major roads across the city — from Gwanghwamun to Olympic Park and from Sangam to Yeouido — were blocked on a large scale due to the Sunday marathon. Oh added that 190 city bus routes were rerouted one after another and that even the detour roads were so congested vehicles could not move.

Oh said the city had "requested and negotiated course adjustments with the organizers multiple times to minimize inconvenience to citizens, but ultimately failed to prevent the large-scale disruption." Oh added that the city would "renegotiate the course and schedule from scratch for next year's event."

According to Oh, the Seoul Metropolitan Government drew up a "marathon guideline" earlier this year and cut the number of city-sponsored races from 15 last year to seven this year — a reduction of more than half. The city also moved start times to before 7:30 a.m., set participant caps by venue, and brought forward the time at which traffic controls for the half-course are lifted — from 11:30 a.m. last year to between 10:30 and 11 a.m. this year.

Despite those measures, the number of central-government-sponsored races surged from one last year to 23 this year, pushing the total number of large-scale traffic control events past 30 this year.

"It would be hard to find another major city that closes downtown roads this frequently for marathons," Oh said, adding that marathon events are not subject to local government approval and that road control authority rests with police, leaving the city with limited power to act on its own.

Oh urged marathon organizers — including media outlets and public institutions — to "weigh heavily the inconvenience citizens will face when deciding whether to sponsor or host an event." Oh also pledged that the city would "work together with the government, police and organizers to develop fundamental solutions."

"The roads belong to all citizens," Oh said. "I will see through to the end the work of reducing inconvenience to citizens."