TOP 3 types of subway accidents in Seoul: Accidents at entrances, inside stations, and on trains based on data from the past 5 years

What are these statistics counting?

The original file consists of five columns: serial number, occurrence date, accident type, occurrence station, and occurrence time, and a total of 2,837 cases are recorded from 2021 to December 30, 2025. Accident types are classified into six categories: door-related, station area accidents, train accidents, footfall, elevator equipment-related, and others.

This data does not include the severity of the accident, whether there were any injuries, or the specific cause. In other words, it should be read with the premise that it is a frequency statistic that shows how often certain types of accidents were reported, not which accidents were more dangerous.

TOP1 door-related accidents: 956 cases, 33.7% of the total

The most frequently reported type over the past five years is door-related accidents, accounting for 956 cases, or 33.7% of the total. It is overwhelmingly number one among the three types, and as we will see later, there is a clear tendency to flock to specific time periods.

Door-related accidents are a classification that encompasses accidents that occur in the process of opening and closing train doors. Since the data itself does not contain the details of each case, this article only covers the number of cases and distribution over time and does not determine individual causes.

TOP2 Accidents within the station: 634 cases, 22.3%

The second most common type is station premises accidents, accounting for 634 cases, or 22.3% of the total. This includes accidents that occur in station spaces, excluding items classified as separate types, such as trains, platform gaps, and escalators and elevators.

Accidents within stations are counted separately from types with clear causes, such as footfall or elevator equipment-related accidents, so this is an item that can be used as a reference to estimate the proportion of accidents in spaces other than platforms, such as stairs or passageways.

TOP3 Accidents on trains: 556 cases, 19.6%

The third is accidents on trains with 556 cases, or 19.6% of the total. As the name suggests, it is a classification that refers to accidents that occur in the cabin while the train is in operation or stopped, and the space in which it occurs is different from accidents related to doors or inside the station.

The TOP 3 types combined amount to 2,146 cases, or 75.6% of all accidents. The remainder is made up of 395 (13.9%) accidents related to footfall, 269 (9.5%) related to lifting equipment, and 27 (1.0%) other accidents, meaning that three-quarters of accidents are concentrated in these three types.

Why do we all fall into these three types: What moments with many points of contact have in common?

What the three types have in common is that they occur in moments that are repeated several times a day, such as getting on and off the train. Unlike accidents that occur only when using specific facilities, such as tripping or related to elevator equipment, accidents at entrances, inside stations, and on trains occur almost every moment of using the subway.

The more moments that are repeated, the greater the cumulative number of events. So, when looking at these statistics, it is more meaningful to look at the situations in which accidents actually occur rather than the ranking by type itself.

So when should you be most careful?

When we divide door-related accidents by time zone, the most occurs in that order: 122 cases at 18:00, 103 cases at 8:00 pm, and 92 cases at 5:00 pm. In other words, there is a little more traffic on the way home from work than on the way to work, but both morning and evening times are noticeably higher than other times.

Even based on all accidents, the rush hour between 7-9 a.m. and 5-7 p.m. accounts for 48.0% of the total. Almost half of the accidents of the day are concentrated in six hours, and 8 o'clock is the single time zone with the most accidents, with 374 (13.2%).

Things to keep in mind when reading numbers

This statistic is not a percentage divided by the number of users, but rather the absolute number of reported incidents. Since rush hour is also the time when there are the most users, just because there are more accidents does not mean that the risk per user is higher.

Additionally, this data only categorizes accident types and does not include injury severity or follow-up. Therefore, rather than directly interpreting the ranking by type as an actual risk ranking, it is appropriate to use it as a reference to gauge when more attention is needed.

What users can actually do

Considering that door-related accidents account for the largest proportion of accidents and occur during rush hours, it is actually helpful to get into the habit of checking to make sure you are not straining to get on a train when the door has started to close or that your luggage or clothes are caught in the door.

Accidents at stations and on trains are often caused by people walking quickly or not holding on to the handle when the train suddenly stops or starts. During busy rush hour, it is helpful for safety to hold on to the handle or pillar first and move inside rather than in front of the door.

• Wait for the next train when the doors start to close
• Check to see if bag straps or hems are caught in the door or in the gap in front of your feet.
• During busy rush hour, hold on to the handle or pillar first.
• In case of a sudden stop, use the space inside rather than next to the door.