Seoul Subway Line 4 (dubbed The Light Blue Line)[by whom?] of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is a long line crossing from the southwest to the northeast across the Seoul National Capital Area. The central section in Seoul City is operated by Seoul Metro with some trains offering through service to Korail's Ansan and Gwacheon Lines.[3] The southern terminus (Oido) is in Jeongwang 4-dong, Siheung City, and the northern terminus (Jinjeop) is in Jinjeop-eup, Namyangju-si, Gyeonggi-do; the newly built northern section (officially called the Jinjeop Line) is correspondingly owned by a company owned by Namyangju-si, with operations contracted to Seoul Metro. In 2022, the Seoul Metro operated section (excluding the Jinjeop Line) had an annual ridership of 219,587,000 or about 601,608 passengers per day.[4]
Express train service stops at all stations between Danggogae and Sanbon, then at Sangnoksu, Jungang, Choji, Ansan, Jeongwang, and Oido. The express service only operates during rush hours on weekdays.
History
1985:
20 April: Line 4 is officially opened from Sanggye to Sadang.[5]
1993:
21 April: The line is extended northward from Sanggye to Danggogae, and southward from Sadang to Namtaeryeong.[5]
1994:
1 April: The line is extended southward from Sadang to Ansan when a section of the Gwacheon Line (from Seonbawi to Indeogwon) and Namtaeryeong Station open.
2000:
28 July: The line is extended westward from Ansan to Oido.
2003
18 July: Surisan Station opens as an in-fill station on the Ansan Line section.
2010
Ansan Line AM express service is launched in the northbound direction only (starting from Ansan). Trains stopped at Jungang, Sangnoksu, and Sanbon, before continuing local up to Danggogae.
2014
1 September: Southbound PM express service is launched (terminating at Ansan). Trains make the same stops as their AM express service counterparts.
2017
7 July: Express service is extended to Oido. In addition to the stops they made before, trains make all stops between Ansan and Oido.
2020
12 September: Express service is modified, with trains now stopping at Choji but skipping Singiloncheon.
2022:
19 March: The Jinjeop Line, a northward extension of Line 4, opens from Danggogae to Jinjeop.[6]
Future
Express services are planned to start skipping various stations north of Sanbon station by 2023 to cut travel times.[7]