Seoul - 6.4 Consumer Culture of the Subway Station Vicinity Areas

cefia
이동: 둘러보기, 검색
Understanding Korea Series No.4
← Previous Seoul Next →
3) Culture of Recreation and Past Time 4) Consumer Culture of the Subway Station Vicinity Areas 5) Education-oriented Culture


The subway system is a complex mass transit system that connects the city like a cobweb. It makes moving around the city convenient for the citizens of Seoul and enable them to maintain secure daily lifestyle in this city with 10 million. Since the opening of Line Number 1 in 1974, 9 more lines have been added. It is connected to 293 stations and covers a total distance of 316.8 kilometers. Once all planned light rail lines open up, all citizens of Seoul would have a subway station that is located within 10 minutes of walk from their homes. Because of this convenience factor, everyday activities of the citizens of Seoul including the commute, shopping and meetings happen around the subway stations. Convenience facilities such as large-scale shopping centers, restaurants and movie theaters opened up in the subway station-influenced areas with many transient commuters forming a new type of consumer culture.

The areas round subway stations with large number of daily commuters are crowded day and night. They include Gangnam Station (198,000), Jamsil Station (163,000), Sadang Station (159,000), Seonneung Station (156,000), Samseong Station (137,000), Express Bus Terminal (129,000), Seoul National University of Education Station (128,000) and Yangjae Station (100,000). Gangnam Station is the transfer station for Sinbundang Line coming in from Bundang/Yongin, and Sadang Station is the transfer station for Line Number 4 coming in from Anyang/Pyeongchon. These two stations are especially crowded. Many young people use Yangjae Station, which is the transfer station for Line Number 3 and the starting point of commuter bus lines to the university campuses that relocated out of Seoul (Sungkyunkwan University, Kyunghee University, Myongji University, etc.); this station is the transportation hub that connects people of Gangbuk and the Han River shoreline to the metropolitan area.



If Myeong-dong is the consumer center of tourists, Gangnam Station area would be the main consumer space for the young people living in Seoul. There are clusters of clothing shops in the underground shopping mall in Gangnam as well as private academies, famous plastic surgeons, restaurants and movie theaters. Gangnam Station which is easily accessible has been established as a haven for young people: there are not only trendy fashions and foods that can satisfy any taste but also movies and musicals that quench cultural desires and 24-hour entertainment readily available to blow away daily stress.


Understanding Korea Series No.4 Seoul

Foreword · Acknowledgments 1. A City Called Seoul · 1.1 Introduction · 1.2 Seoul as the Capital and a Local City

2. The Capital of Joseon, Hanseong · 2.1 Seoul Before It Became the Capital · 2.2 The Principle Behind the Establishment of the Capital, Hanseong · 2.3 Population Changes in Hanseong

3. Modern City Gyeongseong · 3.1 Transformation of the City Prototype · 3.2 Transformation of the Urban Space · 3.3 Expansion of Gyeongseong’s Urban Area

4. The Growth of Seoul and Transformation of the Urban Space · 4.1 Population Growth and Expansion of the Urban Center · 4.2 Redevelopment of Gangbuk’s Original Urban Center · 4.3 New Development of Gangnam · 4.4 Differentiation of the Urban Space, the Way to a Polycentric City · 4.5 Megalopolitanization of Seoul Metropolitan Area: Megacity Seoul

5. Shadow of Growth and Regeneration and Healing of the City · 5.1 The Miracle on the Han River: Accomplishments and Shortcomings · 5.2 Apartment Nation and Economic Imbalance between Gangnam and Gangbuk · 5.3 Disappearance and Regeneration of the Traditional Urban Residences · 5.4 Waterways and Reviving Stream that have Disappeared · 5.5 Restoration of the Destructed Ecological Environment · 5.6 Congested Streets and Rising Environmental Pollution

6. Historical and Cultural City, Culture of Seoul · 6.1 Seoul’s Symbolic Space and the Emblem of Seoul, Haechi · 6.2 Diverse Cultural Areas and Streets · 6.3 Culture of Recreation and Past Time · 6.4 Consumer Culture of the Subway Station Vicinity Areas · 6.5 Education-oriented Culture

7. Global City Seoul’s Present · 7.1 Global City Seoul · 7.2 Policies Geared Toward a Global City

Sources · About the Author