One of Seoul’s Hangang Bus vessels ran aground near the Jamsil Pier in Songpa-gu on November 15, halting operations on the Jamsil–Apgujeong route. Some passengers who were unaware of the suspension showed up at the pier on the 16th only to turn back.

In a briefing that day, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said the “direct cause of the incident was the vessel veering off its designated route and getting stuck in a shallow section of the river, while the indirect cause appears to have been insufficient brightness of the navigation lights marking the shallow area.” The Future Hangang Headquarters reached this conclusion after reviewing the captain’s accident report, onboard CCTV footage, depth measurement data, dredging records, and information on underwater obstacles, in cooperation with Hangang Bus.

Although buoys had been placed to prevent vessels from entering the shallow section, the bus appears to have crossed beyond them. Limited nighttime visibility and the dimness of the navigation lights contributed to the incident. “The buoys have blinking red and green lights, but on the CCTV footage, one of them appeared faint,” an official at the Future Hangang Headquarters said.

Following the accident, the city said it would partially resume service only between Magok and Yeouido, south of Hannam Bridge, for the time being. Operations upstream of the bridge, including Apgujeong, Oksu, Ttukseom, and Jamsil,. have been suspended. Notices announcing the suspension were posted throughout Ttukseom Pier. While Ttukseom Hangang Park was crowded with weekend visitors, the pier remained quiet. Over the course of an hour in the morning, around ten people came to the pier but turned away. Kim Man-seong, 30, who arrived unaware of the suspension, also made a wasted trip. “It’s unsettling that issues keep happening,” he said. “It might have been better to postpone operations until everything was fully prepared.”

Yeouido Pier was also chaotic. When a man complained, “I saw on the news that service resumed, but why isn’t it going to Jamsil?” a pier staffer responded awkwardly, “There’s a problem because the water level is too low.” Around 70 passengers, including families and foreign tourists, boarded the Hangang Bus departing from Yeouido at 1:30 p.m. Kim Bo-ram ,37, who had planned to go to Ttukseom Hangang Park with her six-year-old son, changed plans and headed to Mangwon Hangang Park after learning of the suspension. “With the frequent cancellations, it doesn’t seem reliable enough for commuting,” she said. Another passenger, Ms. Yoo, 49, who boarded with her parents after a family meal, said, “We’ve heard about all the breakdowns, so I was worried something might happen while we were on board.”

Ms. Oh, 46, who rode with her nine-year-old daughter, remarked while disembarking at Magok Pier, “This doesn’t really feel like a ‘bus.’” She added, “It takes 15 to 20 minutes just to board and get off. I don’t think it’s suitable for commuting. There aren’t enough staff to guide people, and crowd control isn’t well organized. If even twice as many people got on, it feels like it could lead to an accident. There’s a lot that needs to be improved.”

A notice at Yeouido Pier read, “Service to Jamsil will not operate today only,” but the timeline for restoring suspended routes became uncertain after the salvage of the stranded vessel near Jamsil was delayed. The city plans to lift the vessel on the 19th at 7 p.m. during high tide. “It’s still unclear how long it will take to complete the necessary measures and resume normal operations,” a city official said.