Long-overdue upgrade helps to keep Kim’s masses moving
Pyongyang is upgrading its overcrowded mass transit system with brand new subway cars, trams and buses, in a campaign meant to show that leader Kim Jong Un is raising the country’s standard of living.
The long-overdue improvements, while still modest, are a welcome change for the North Korean capital’s roughly 3 million residents, who have few options to get to work or school each day.
First came new, high-tech subway cars and electric trolley buses – both announced by North Korean state media with photos of Kim personally conducting the final inspection tours. Officials say three new electric trams are running daily routes across Pyongyang.
Transport officials say the capacity of the new trams is about 300. Passengers must buy tickets in shops beforehand and put them in a ticket box when they get on. The flat fare is a dirtcheap 5 won (NZ$0.0008) for any tram, trolley bus, subway or regular bus ride on the system.
Privately owned cars are scarce in Pyongyang. Taxis are increasingly common, but costly for most people. Factory or official-use vehicles are an alternative, when available, as are bicycles. Motorised bikes imported from China are popular, while scooters and motorcycles are rare.
The subway, with elaborate stations inspired by those in Soviet-era Moscow and dug deep enough to survive a nuclear attack, runs at three- to fiveminute intervals, depending on the hour. Officials say it transports about 400,000 passengers on weekdays. But its two lines, with 17 stations, operate only on the western side of the Taedong River, which runs through the centre of the city.
‘‘There are plans to build train stations on the east side of the river, but nothing has started yet,’’ subway guide Kim Yong Ryon said.
The lack of passenger cars on Pyongyang’s roads has benefits. Traffic jams are uncommon and, compared to Beijing or Seoul, the city has refreshingly clean, crisp air. Electric trams, which run on rails, and electric trolley buses, which have wheels, are relatively green transport options.
But mass transit in Pyongyang can be slow and uncomfortable. The tram system, in particular, is among the most crowded in the world. Swarms of commuters cramming into trams are a common sight during the morning rush hour, and getting across town can take about an hour.
Pyongyang’s tram system has four lines. In typical North Korean fashion, one is devoted to taking passengers to and from the mausoleum where the bodies of national founder Kim Il Sung and his son, Kim Jong Il, lie in state.
North Korea squeezes every last inch out of its fleet. Red stars are awarded for every 50,000 kilometres driven without an accident, and it’s not unusual to see trams with long lines of red stars stencilled across their sides. One seen in Pyongyang last month had 12 stars – that’s 600,000km, or the equivalent of about 15 trips around the Earth.