Gangnam station (Korean: 강남역) is a station on Line 2 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway. The station is located within the Greater Gangnam Area between the Gangnam and Seocho Districts of Seoul, South Korea. The station is the busiest station on the Seoul Metropolitan Subway, serving over 70,000 daily passengers on average.[3]
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 Station Sign (Line 2) | ||||||||||||||||
| Korean name | ||||||||||||||||
| Hangul | 강남역 | |||||||||||||||
| Hanja | 江南驛 | |||||||||||||||
| Revised Romanization | Gangnam-yeok | |||||||||||||||
| McCune–Reischauer | Kangnam-yŏk | |||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||
| Location | 804 Yeoksam 2-dong, 303 Gangnamdaero Jiha, Gangnam-gu, Seoul | |||||||||||||||
| Operated by | Seoul Metro Shinbundang Railroad Corporation | |||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | Line 2 Shinbundang Line | |||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 4 | |||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 4 | |||||||||||||||
| Construction | ||||||||||||||||
| Structure type | Underground | |||||||||||||||
| Key dates | ||||||||||||||||
| December 23, 1982[1] | Line 2 opened | |||||||||||||||
| October 28, 2011[1] | Shinbundang Line opened | |||||||||||||||
| Passengers | ||||||||||||||||
| (Daily) Based on Jan-Dec of 2012. Line 2: 207,410[2] Shinbundang Line: 19,856[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Services | ||||||||||||||||
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This station serves as a crucial transfer point between Line 2 and buses to all over Seoul and southern Gyeonggi Province. It became the northern terminus of the Shinbundang Line on October 29, 2011 until May 28, 2022 when it was extended north to Sinsa, whereas the southern terminus being at Gwanggyo.
Both stations have two tracks and two side platforms.
History
edit- December 9, 1982 - The station name was decided to be 'Gangnam Station'.
- December 23, 1982 - Line 2 station completed.
- October 29, 2011 - Shinbundang Line station completed.
The station
edit
The area surrounding the station is an important commercial and entertainment district. The station is located at the western end of Teheranno, home to many corporate headquarters and impressive towers, while the area immediately to the north of the station is densely packed with bars, restaurants and clubs. There are also many shops in the subway station below ground. In 2007, the area was the 10th most expensive shopping street in the world with an average rent of US$431 per square foot.[4]
The section of Gangnam Boulevard from exit No.2 of this station to exit No.5 of Sinnonhyeon Station of Line 9 is designated as a smoke-free zone by the Gangnam District office.[5]
Line 2 runs on the right hand track, whereas the Shinbundang Line runs on the left hand track; this is because the Shinbundang Line is a national railway line (which typically runs on the left), while Line 2 is a subway line (which typically runs on the right in Seoul). This can be confusing to tourists making a transfer here, as many tourists are accustomed to riding on either the left-hand track or the right-hand track.
Station layout
edit| G | Street level | Exit |
| L1 Concourse |
Lobby | Customer Service, Shops, Vending machines, ATMs |
| L2 Platform level |
Side platform, doors will open on the right | |
| Inner loop | ← Line 2 toward Chungjeongno (Seoul Nat'l Univ. of Education) | |
| Outer loop | Line 2 toward City Hall (Yeoksam) → | |
| Side platform, doors will open on the right | ||
| L3 Platform level |
Side platform, doors will open on the left | |
| Southbound | Shinbundang Line toward Gwanggyo (Yangjae) → | |
| Northbound | ← Shinbundang Line toward Sinsa (Sinnonhyeon) | |
| Side platform, doors will open on the left | ||
Passenger load
editIn 2007, it was the busiest subway station in the Seoul Metropolitan Subway system, with approximately 123,000 daily passengers using it on average.[6]
In a survey conducted in 2011 by the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs on 92 Administrative divisions across the country, it reported that Gangnam Station had a daily average of 110,129 people boarding and 114,338 people alighting the subway. Making this the busiest public transit stop, with more than 100,000 people every day.[7]
Vicinity
edit- Exit 1: KIPO Seoul Office, Yeoksam Tax Office
- Exit 8: Kukkiwon (World Taekwondo Headquarters)
- Exit 10 : Seoul Seocho Elementary School
- Exit 12 : Yeoksam Post Office, National Library for Children and Young Adults
The headquarters of South Korean skincare and cosmetics manufacturer Skin Food is in the DaeRyung Scecho Tower in Seocho-dong, Seocho District nearby to this station.[8]
References
edit- ^ a b 강남역 (in Korean). Doopedia. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
- ^ a b Monthly Number of Passengers between Subway Stations Archived October 6, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Korea Transportation Database, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
- ^ Boram, Yoon (2023-05-10). 서울지하철 강남역 하루 7만명 이용…버스 최다는 고속터미널. Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ "New York's Fifth Avenue tops the ranking of the world's most expensive shopping locations". Cushman & Wakefield Inc. 14 Nov 2007. Archived from the original on 2008-08-25.
- ^ Kwon, Sang-soo (12 September 2012). "City designates area by COEX as smoke-free". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on 9 December 2012. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Friday and Gangnam station attract the largest number of passengers, Money Today, August 7, 2005. (in Korean)
- ^ "Gangnam Busiest Subway Station in Korea". The Chosun Ilbo. 23 April 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
- ^ "Skin Food<Headquarter Address". Skin Food official website. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.