149 guards patrol lines 1 through 8  to ensure safety,  convenience


A new set of uniforms has begun appearing in Seoul’s subway stations. Walking in pairs with approachable smiles that mask a constant battle readiness of sorts are the security guards of the capital’s sprawling public transportation system.

As the number of crimes committed on Seoul’s subway rises, line operators have doubled the number of guards for one of the world’s most frequented systems.

And as the program is still new, people are curious to see who these guards are and learn about what they do as they patrol the cars.

“We are in charge of patrolling both the subways and the stations to respond to and prevent sexual predators, vendors and others carrying out criminal behavior and disorderly conduct,” said Oh Jeong-eun.

Oh is but one of 149 guards who are tasked with patroling lines one through eight to ensure both the safety and convenience of passengers.

Oh is a shining example of someone you might see under the jacket. Although the 27-year-old has a friendly disarming demeanor, she is a third degree black belt in hapkido and taekwondo, second degree black belt in judo and first degree in kendo. Like Oh, most of her colleagues are well able to handle themselves, such as former Army special forces officer Jung Dong-oh.

But despite their former training and imposing stature, the guards for Seoul Metro, operators of lines one through four, and Seoul Metropolitan Rapid Transit, lines five through eight, are taught “service with a smile.” Over 7.5 million people use the eight lines a day, making it the second busiest subway system in the world behind Japan.

“I feel good when we arrive on scene to help someone who did not even request help to begin with and after we have helped them in some way, they are astonished that we are there to offer assistance,” said Yim Chang-jo.

The service began in September with 65 guards patrolling lines one, two, five and seven. However, crime continued to rise and the success of the program prompted more guards to be dispatched.

From the start of the program to January of this year, guards have responded to 21,176 cases including illegal vendors, those under the influence, beggars and sexual predators.

According to police data, reported crimes committed on Seoul’s subway have seen a steady rise from 1,878 in 2007 to 1,994 in 2008 and 2,284 in 2009.

There are aspects of the job that allow the guards to see the shallow aspects of today’s society.

“I get frustrated when I see people ignore or simply walk by those in need of help on the subway,” said Yim.

“When we patrol the subways and stations there are a lot of illegal vendors and if you look at them they are usually grandmothers and other people who are struggling to just make a living,” said Jung.

“It breaks my heart when I have to deal with them.”

And as expected with any security position, there is an element of danger.

“I have heard that patrolling at night is somewhat more dangerous than the day,” said Jung.

“First of all it’s late at night and during that time there are a lot of drunk individuals and handling them can be somewhat troublesome,” he said, adding that he has not been in a physical altercation.

The guards also noted the difficulty in responding to cases of sexual harassment, one of the main reasons the guards have been deployed.

“In reality it is very difficult for us to catch a suspect in question, because if the woman does not directly report it, we need to obtain some sort of physical evidence which is nearly impossible,” said Jung.

“I have responded to situations involving sexual harassment, but the victims usually do not like to press charges,” said Yim.

But aside from a few obstacles the guards feel a sense of purpose in their work, understanding that they are making a difference.

“I woke up a drunk individual who had fallen asleep and he said thank you because he was about to miss his stop,” said Jung who patrols line 2 between Jamsil and Konkuk University.

“It’s just that people are unaware of who we are and what we do, but once we explain to them our duty, they express their gratitude and tell us that they feel safer because of us,” said Oh. “I love my job when I think about how I am making the subways a safer place when I patrol them late in the night.”

To alert the guards call or text 1577-1234 for lines 1 through 4 and 1577-5678 for lines 5 through 8.

By Robert Lee (robert@heraldcorp.com)