"From Quarantine to Safe Return Home" KT's 'Safe Taxi Call Check-in' with Just One Phone Call

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Cho] KT announced on the 1st that it will launch the ‘Safe Taxi Call Check-in’ service, which allows taxi users to record their boarding information with a single phone call.

Until now, taxi users either did not record their boarding separately or had the inconvenience of filling out a handwritten log inside the vehicle. Additionally, improper recording of information made it difficult to trace COVID-19 confirmed cases or conduct epidemiological investigations of close contacts.

To solve these problems, KT explained that it introduced the ‘Safe Taxi Call Check-in’ service, which allows adding a recipient of the text message to the existing 080 Call Check-in service. This service is available for both corporate taxis and individual taxis.

To use Call Check-in, users call a specific 080 number posted inside the taxi, and an automated message says, “Hello, this is Taxi Call Check-in. Press 1 to add a text message recipient, or press 2 if none.” After pressing 1 and entering the phone number to receive the message, when the call ends, the vehicle number is sent via text message to both the taxi passenger and the designated recipient. This allows automatic message transmission to a guardian when taking a taxi at night or when elderly passengers ride alone, enabling safe use.

If specifying a text message recipient is unnecessary, pressing 2 completes the Call Check-in and ends the call. Taxi usage records remain only as call logs, reducing the risk of exposure like paper logs. The basic call fee is 4.82 KRW per use, and sending a text message costs 7.92 KRW per message. Since the fees are charged to the individual or corporate taxi operators who subscribe to the service, taxi passengers bear no cost.

KT will provide the service free of charge for the entire month of March to promote early adoption of the ‘Safe Taxi Call Check-in’ service. KT also plans to introduce services reflecting user feedback collected during this period.

Min Hyebyeong, head of KT Enterprise Service DX Division, said, “KT formed the BDO (Business Development & Operation) group to quickly develop the Safe Taxi Call Check-in service to eliminate blind spots in COVID-19 prevention and contribute to a safer society. We will continue to strive to ensure that citizens can use taxis safely and conveniently even during the COVID-19 situation.”