With the city working tirelessly to keep the coronavirus at bay, Seoul is already looking into the future to better prevent these situations! The country's capital is looking to install contactless gates, which would eliminate the need for the dreaded card tapping and top-ups! Read on to see the full story!

This is Seoul's subway fare gates just about 10 years ago...

And this is how (some of) the Seoul metro gates look like now!

Subways running across South Korea's capital will get contactless gates that will allow passengers to pass through without directly tagging their cards, the Seoul metropolitan government said today (July 2nd).

The city's subway operator plans to inject 2.9 billion won (US$2.4 million) to set up 556 "tagless gates" at subway stations on lines No. 1 to 8 in 2022, according to the city government's proposal aimed at easing infection risks on public transportation.

Passengers will be able to get on trains without tagging their transportation or credit and debit cards at the ticket gates and instead pay through a smartphone app, it added.

The city government plans to start installing the contact-free gates in 2022 and complete setting up 3,340 gates across all stations by 2023.

The current fare gates are considered 'touch-contact' points, because of the tendancy for commuters to touch the gate while tapping their subway cards.

The plan is part of the city government's blueprint to better tackle the new coronavirus and other potential infectious viruses going forward.

The municipal government said it plans to spend 611.6 billion won for new projects and ongoing projects to prepare for the "post-coronavirus era."

Other projects include training 300 officers who will help epidemiological investigators trace virus patients and developing digital systems to help state-run companies work remotely.

"The post-coronavirus era is an imminent future that is approaching silently, but with a force. Public services that are directly related to the lives of (Seoul) citizens is an area where innovation should be prioritized for the post-coronavirus era," Mayor Park Won-soon said.

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