City Bus Drivers' 'Citizen Monitoring System'
Scoring on Friendliness and Safe Driving
System Evaluating Work Attitude
Bonus Points Limited to Few Factors Like 'Greetings'
Drivers Feel Pressure and Watch Passengers
Monitors Also Complain About "Only Negative Points"
[Asia Economy Reporters Byungdon Yoo, Jeongyun Lee] "If I think of it as deducting points from me, I end up being cautious of every passenger who boards the bus."
Bus drivers are expressing dissatisfaction with the ‘Citizen Monitoring’ system implemented by some city bus companies in the Seoul area. Although introduced with the intention of improving passenger convenience and road safety, the system is criticized for having few opportunities to earn bonus points and many deductions, making it an unfavorable attendance evaluation for drivers.
The Citizen Monitoring system evaluates drivers’ work attitudes based on criteria such as ▲Courtesy (appearance, consideration during boarding and alighting, driving attitude, response attitude) ▲Safe driving (sudden starts, sudden braking, sudden lane changes, door opening before departure, traffic law compliance, orderly stopping at bus stops) ▲Operation status (non-stop passing, route map inside the bus, announcement broadcasts, guidance during vehicle accidents) ▲Condition of the vehicle interior and exterior (heating/cooling, cleanliness inside and outside, facility malfunctions). Specific items vary slightly by company implementing the system.
Randomly selected monitoring agents board buses to inspect these items and deduct points for violations per category. This system is similar to the ‘City Bus Company Evaluation Manual’ conducted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government for city bus companies. While public officials serve as monitors for the city, ordinary citizens act as monitoring agents for bus companies.
However, most categories only have deduction factors, with no opportunities to earn bonus points. Deduction factors are numerous and heavily weighted, including passing bus stops without stopping (-6 points), failure to guide passengers during vehicle malfunctions (-3 points), damage to interior facilities (6 points per incident), and one-handed driving (-4 points). In contrast, bonus points are limited to actions such as greeting passengers when boarding (+1 point) and confirming the final passenger is seated before departure (+1 point). From the drivers’ perspective, it is practically impossible to receive good scores.
Driver Changhak Lee (41, pseudonym) said, "Safe driving is obviously a must, but it is true that I feel pressured when someone evaluates me with a scorecard," adding, "If I get deducted points for one mistake, and I know someone is monitoring me, wouldn’t I end up doubting every single passenger?"
Citizens who volunteered as monitoring agents also feel uncomfortable. Chorok Kim (28), who served as a monitoring agent on a route she frequently used during commuting, said, "At first, I applied thinking it was a good cause and worked hard, but I quit after realizing I was only looking for faults to deduct drivers’ points," adding, "There are drivers who are kind and drive safely, so I wish there were more opportunities to earn bonus points."
City bus companies implementing the Citizen Monitoring system do not accept such criticism. Most companies refused to comment on the matter. The only company representative who spoke said, "The main purpose is to prevent drivers from driving aggressively or rudely as part of public service, but we did not expect controversy," adding, "If the evaluation criteria are unreasonable, the union can request changes and negotiate with the company."
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