Category: Seoul

I guess we will see if this helps to slow the spread of COVID:

Gatherings of five people or more will be banned in the greater Seoul area in an effort to curb the ongoing spread of COVID-19 which has been showing no signs of abating.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government and neighboring local governments in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, Monday, the stricter social distancing measure will take effect from Wednesday and last until to Jan. 3, the period when many Christmas and year-end gatherings and events are expected to take place.

The ban on gatherings of more than four people is a stronger measure than restrictions that could be applied under the highest Level 3 social distancing, in which gatherings of 10 or more people are prohibited.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest restrictions going into place in Seoul to combat the spread of COVID-19:

The Seoul city government said Friday that stores, movie theaters and multiple other facilities must close after 9 p.m. for two weeks starting this weekend to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Acting Seoul Mayor Seo Jeong-hyup announced the new restriction during a virtual press briefing, saying the measure will go into force Saturday amid worries over spiking cases in the capital recently. (……..)

Businesses subject to the new restriction include stores, movie theaters, internet cafes, game arcades, private academies, study halls, amusement parks, beauty salons, barber shops, large grocery stores and department stores. They can reopen at 5 a.m.

Exceptions will be made for small grocery stores and other shops that are less than 300 square meters in size and for restaurants offering takeout and delivery.

Buses and subways will run on a 30 percent reduced schedule after 9 p.m. The restriction will apply to buses starting Saturday and to subways starting Tuesday.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here we go again with tougher restrictions on gatherings and businesses in Seoul:

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Monday it was instituting its own emergency measures to curtail an alarming spread of Covid-19 in recent weeks, including cutting back on late-night public transportation.  

To enforce the central government’s Level 2 social distancing recommendation across the greater Seoul area announced a day earlier, the capital city will be cutting down on the bus and train services after 10 p.m. by 20 percent, said Acting Seoul Mayor Seo Jung-hyup in an online briefing.  

The measures will be enforced on buses starting Tuesday, while subway operation hours will be reduced starting Friday after public announcements are made.  

All public rallies of 10 or more people will be banned starting Tuesday midnight until further notice, the city announced.  

“Due to the high chain infection risks posed by Seoul’s endemic high population density and heavy foot traffic, we have resolved to put in place pre-emptive measures comparable to Level 3 social distancing,” Seo said.  

Should these measures fail to curb the spread of the coronavirus in the near term, the city plans to stop subways at 11 p.m. Subway times were shortened in April, to midnight from 1 a.m.  

Seoul officials said they plan special measures to ensure the safety of the upcoming national university entrance exam, which takes place on Dec. 3.  

Seo urged churches and other religious institutions across the city to carry services online and prevent large gatherings. That recommendation was a step up from Level 2 social distancing measures, which require reducing the number of people at services by 20 percent.  

At Level 2 social distancing — the third highest level of the government’s five-tier system — any event involving 100 people or more will be prohibited, while nightclubs and bars that allow dancing will be forced to shut down. Restaurants won’t be allowed to serve customers after 9 p.m., but takeout will be allowed. Cafes can operate normal hours but only serve takeout.  

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but I feel bad for the small business owners trying to deal with the ever changing restrictions. This pandemic is going to wipeout so many of them by the time it is over.

With the redevelopment going on now this closes the square at least in the near term to anti-government protests:

The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s grand project to expand and beautify Gwanghwamun Square commenced Monday, as the Korean capital vowed to increase pedestrian traffic and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  
   
Acting Seoul Mayor Seo Jung-hyup said in an online press briefing at City Hall that the Seoul Metropolitan Government was finally kicking off the project after years of planning and discussing with the public, saying his office was determined to swap the “greyness” of Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul with a “green and ecological” space.  
   
The Gwanghwamun project was a core pillar of the late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon’s green initiative to redesign the central Seoul area so that people can move about more easily on foot rather than relying on cars and polluting the environment.  
   
The city will essentially work toward converting all six lanes west of Gwanghwamun Square into a large park.  
   
On the east side of the square in front of the U.S. Embassy, where there are currently six lanes, the city will add one to three more lanes. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

It will be interesting to see how strictly this is enforced. If it is enforced like traffic violations that means there will not be much enforcement:

The Seoul metropolitan government will begin imposing fines of 100,000 won (US$88) on those who do not wear face masks in public next week, a measure aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus.

Enforcement of mandatory mask wearing will begin Nov. 13 after a one-month trial period, officials said.

Exceptions will be made for children under the age of 14, the disabled and those diagnosed with a medical condition that makes it difficult for them to breathe through a mask.

Yonhap

The mask ordnance even applies in restaurants and bars:

Of the multiuse facilities, the rule will apply to not only bars, karaoke rooms and buffet restaurants that are limited-entry establishments under the government’s Level 1 social distancing guidelines, but also 16 “medium-risk” facilities including private academies, arcades, houses of worship and indoor wedding halls.

I am not sure how you eat and drink with a mask on so it seems this will be difficult to enforce in these establishments. This mask ordnance will probably be much to do about nothing.

Just another sign that winter is near:

Seoul observed the first frost and freeze of autumn Saturday, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

The temperature dropped to 3.2 degrees Celsius in the capital during the morning as a cold front swept across the country, the weather agency said.

The first frost and freeze in Seoul this fall were spotted in the morning, arriving three days and 15 days earlier than last year, respectively, as well as two days and six days earlier than the long-term average.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

More bad news for Korean Air:

The Seoul Metropolitan Government has designated a large plot of land owned by Korean Air in the center of Seoul as a public park.  
   
On Wednesday, the city government announced it would designate the Songhyeon-dong, central Seoul, site as a public park, changing it from the current “special-purpose complex.”  
   
The redesignation will not come into effect until the Anti‑Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) comes up with an arbitration plan between the city government and Korean Air, which opposes the designation. The procedure was initiated upon Korean Air’s request in August after Seoul City first proposed turning the land into a park for public use.  
   
Covering nine acres, the piece of land in Songhyeon-dong is located right next to Gyeongbok Palace. The company purchased it from Samsung Life Insurance in 2008 and had planned to develop a cultural complex.  
   
After years of failing to proceed with the project due to construction regulations in one of Seoul’s most preserved neighborhoods, the company announced that it would sell the plot of land along with other non-core property assets in February this year. It was part of a grand plan to secure funds amid a management crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.  
   
Now that the site faces a future as a public park, it’s unlikely that Korea Air will be able to sell it for the high price it was looking for. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but the public park designation pretty much means the only possible buyer of the property will be the Seoul city government. They will likely not pay what the land would of been worth if it was not designated a park.

Korean Air had been trying to maximize the sale of the property due to the ongoing loss of profits by the COVID-19 pandemic.

They should have put protester tents in the concept photo because that is what people are going to see mostly at Gwanghwamun Square:

Construction on Gwanghwamun Square will commence next month as the Seoul city government tries to turn it into something more like a park and less like a traffic island.    
   
“The roads on the east side of the square will be changed in a stage-by-stage manner so as to incur the least possible traffic difficulties,” the Seoul Metropolitan Government said in a statement Sunday. “The construction will start at the end of October.”  
   
The city government’s plan to revamp the square was first announced in 2018. It involved expanding the square westward and incorporating the southbound roads between the square and the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, and rerouting the roads in front of Gyeongbok Palace to incorporate that area into the square as well.  
   
Some experts warned of traffic nightmares and the public opposed earlier plans, leading to major changes.  
   
The southbound roads west of the square will still be incorporated, but not the roads in front of the palace. Instead the five lanes of northbound traffic on the eastern side will be expanded to three going in one direction and four going in the other. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

This might be the first Chuseok in a long time without bumper to bumper traffic if this poll is to be believed:

 Three in four Seoul citizens don’t have any plans to visit their hometowns or travel long distances during the Chuseok holiday due mainly to fears of coronavirus transmission, a poll showed Saturday.

In the survey of 849 citizens aged 18 or older, 56.8 percent said they have no plans to travel long distances during Chuseok, while another 16 percent said they have canceled their holiday travel plans due to COVID-19.

Merely 12.4 percent said they have travel plans during the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving, with 14.8 percent saying they are still undecided whether to travel.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but what I always tell people is that the best time to go to Seoul is on Chuseok. It is easy to get around with little to no lines for anything because of how many people leave the city for the holiday. Apparently that will not be the case this year.