It Took 40 Minutes to Move 100 Meters… Why Seoul's Major Hospitals Have Become a "Traffic Hell"

Frustrations among patients and citizens are growing as severe traffic congestion repeatedly occurs around major hospitals in Seoul.

The traffic gridlock is attributed to the high usage of private cars due to the nature of critically ill patients, coupled with the intensifying phenomenon of "medical pilgrimage," where patients from outside the capital region flock to major hospitals in Seoul instead of local ones.

The summer monsoon season has also added to the difficulties.

According to Yonhap News coverage on Monday, complaints about traffic jams in front of Asan Medical Center flooded social media on July 21.

Online communities were swamped with personal accounts such as, "It's a 10-minute drive from my house to the hospital, but it took an hour and a half," and "It took an hour just to drive halfway around the hospital."

A 39-year-old visitor surnamed Lee, who visited Asan Medical Center at the time, said, "It took me three hours just to get out of the underground parking lot," adding, "It was so hot, and the internet wasn't working, which made it frustrating."

The situation is similar at other major hospitals.

Checking the traffic conditions of Seoul's top five major tertiary general hospitals (the "Big 5") around 11:00 AM on July 24, most of the roads leading into the hospitals were in a state of "congestion."

The situation is no different for university hospitals in Seoul that are not part of the Big 5.

On regional community apps, multiple posts could be found featuring photos of heavy traffic stalled in front of Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, along with comments like, "It's worse than the bumper-to-bumper traffic on the highway during holiday returns," and "I was only able to get away after receiving the left-turn signal eight times."

A 57-year-old worker surnamed Lee, who works near Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital, said, "Traffic backs up right from in front of the hospital to the point where it takes 40 minutes to move 100 meters," adding, "It is so frustrating during every commute."

Analysts suggest this traffic congestion is the complex result of the concentration of medical demand in the capital region combined with the mobility characteristics of patients who are in physical discomfort.

An official from Asan Medical Center explained, "In our case, the proportion of regional patients is high, so many of them drive up from the provinces," adding, "Because the severity of the patients' illnesses is also high, the demand for using their own cars rather than public transportation is significant."

According to the office of Democratic Party lawmaker Chang Jong-tae, the number of patients from outside the capital region at the top five general hospitals in Seoul increased by 11.8% from 712,848 in 2022 to 797,103 in 2024.

This is 2.5 times the growth rate of patients from the capital region (4.7%) over the same period.

A 67-year-old patient surnamed Park, who visits Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital from Incheon for rectal cancer treatment, said, "It's far from home, but I came to Seoul after a recommendation from an acquaintance," adding, "It's inconvenient to take public transportation all the way here from Incheon, so I drive my car every time."

Park continued, "I have to come almost every day to receive chemotherapy, and sometimes there are so many people that parking and waiting at the hospital take a long time."

Hospital officials agreed that while they recommend using public transportation or free shuttle buses, there are practical limitations.

An official from Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital said, "When we send text messages regarding appointments, we always guide patients to use the shuttle bus, but since many patients have physical discomfort, the proportion of private car usage is much higher."

Eighty-one-year-old Seok, who visited the hospital using the shuttle bus on this day after undergoing lung cancer treatment, also said, "I usually come in my son's car, but other plans came up, so I took the shuttle bus just for today."

Worsening summer weather conditions, such as intense heat and monsoons, are also contributing factors that exacerbate traffic congestion.

An official from Asan Medical Center stated that the traffic chaos on July 21 was an exceptional case, heavily influenced by the overlap of heavy rain and traffic congestion on surrounding roads.

The official stated, "The southern end of the Olympic Bridge is already chronically congested, and the recent heavy rains overlapped, pushing congestion to its peak," adding, "We have a parking lot with a capacity of 5,000 vehicles and recently even expanded a parking tower, so a lack of parking space itself is not the issue."

Ultimately, points are being raised that the traffic difficulties in front of major hospitals in Seoul are problems created together by regional medical disparities, patient transportation methods, and special weather conditions.

A university hospital parking management employee confessed, "We have 20 people working at a time to direct traffic, but things often don't go smoothly," adding, "Even when we receive a lot of complaints, there is nothing we can do. I hope people realize that we are always striving to expand parking spaces whenever an opportunity arises."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.