Even after years of campaigning, sizeable backpacks continue to prove a risky choice for a bag during a busy morning commute in South Korea.



This year alone, scores of complaints against the use of backpacks have been filed to Seoul Metro, which runs a network of the subway system. Ninety complaints have been reported so far this year, as of September.



Complaints regarding backpacks were categorized separately for the first time this year, so there is no specific data to compare with the past.





University students stage a flash mob campaign to raise awareness of backpack manners on Seoul’s subway trains. (Yonhap)



But a closer look at the complaints offers a glimpse into the minds of commuters being rubbed the wrong way by backpacks.



“When there are already an overwhelming number of subway commuters, the sheer number of backpacks cause inconvenience,” one complaint filed to Seoul Metro read.



“People wearing backpacks are causing inconvenience to others,” another complaint read.





(Yonhap)



This sentiment is echoed online.



“I want to rip apart backpacks on the subway. They keep barging in without a care. Perhaps the trend of backpacks are reflective of a culture of extreme individualism in today’s society,” one angry Twitter user wrote.



The unfavorable view toward backpacks on public transport is nothing new in Korea.



A 2017 survey conducted by job search website Incruit revealed that nearly half of the Korean adult respondents had suffered inconvenience caused by commuters with backpacks.



The survey of 4,116 people also saw an overwhelming 86 percent agreeing with a backpack etiquette campaign on public transport.







A safety poster released by Busan Transportation Corp. urges passengers to wear backpacks on their front. (Busan Transportation Corp.)



Since 2015, Seoul Metro has been playing educational videos on digital screens both in the train and at subway stations, as part of a long-running public manners campaign to enlighten commuters on how to wear backpacks in a way that is not frowned upon.



In one of the safety-themed cartoon series currently available on Seoul Metro’s official website, a man with a backpack bigger than his torso is depicted causing trouble, bumping into other passengers around him and blocking the way before getting told off by another man.



Seoul is not alone in grappling with unruly passengers who brandish backpacks.



In April, Busan Transportation Corp. unveiled a humorous poster on safety, urging passengers to wear their backpacks on their front and to be more aware of their surroundings.



By Yim Hyun-su (hyunsu@heraldcorp.com)