Han River ferries will be out of service at least until spring, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Thursday.

The capital city’s Hangang Bus operations were originally scheduled to resume in January, but their return has been pushed back due to administrative requests from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.

The ministry and the city conducted a joint inspection of the Hangang Buses in November following a string of mishaps, including vessel malfunctions and a ferry running aground in shallow waters.

As a result, the city government submitted an action plan to make its river ferry system safer for the public, but the ministry demanded that the city specify its implementation plan and supplement the measures it came up with.

Currently, the Hangang Buses only operate between the Magok, Mangwon and Yeouido areas along the river, west of the Hannam Bridge, due to water depth issues.

The city said it plans to soon deploy four additional ferries to its fleet to operate express routes that will stop at just three docks — Magok, Yeouido and Jamsil — during commute hours.