Sex Offenders of Illegal Filming Banned from Taxi Driving for Up to 20 Years

Amendment to Passenger Transport Service Act Approved at Cabinet Meeting
Up to 20-Year Taxi License Restriction for Illegal Filming Offenders
Business Suspension for Renting Cars to Unlicensed Drivers
Amendment to Take Effect from January Next Year After Promulgation

The above photo is not related to the article below / Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] From now on, those who commit sex crimes such as illegal filming will be prohibited from driving taxis for up to 20 years. People whose licenses have been suspended due to drunk driving will also be restricted from obtaining bus and taxi driver qualifications.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced that the promulgation bill of the "Passenger Transport Service Act," which includes these provisions, was approved at the Cabinet meeting on the 20th. The amendment includes measures to address safety concerns of the public using taxis, buses, rental cars, etc., and to strengthen user protection.

First, to block sex offenders such as illegal filming from entering the taxi industry, those offenders will be restricted from obtaining taxi driver qualifications for up to 20 years. Illegal filming also includes producing fake videos and threats using filmed materials. If a person who has already obtained taxi driver qualifications commits illegal filming crimes, their qualifications will be revoked.

Restrictions on obtaining taxi and bus driver qualifications for drunk drivers will also be strengthened. Until now, only those whose licenses were revoked due to drunk driving were restricted from obtaining taxi and bus driver qualifications, but from now on, even license suspension will prohibit driving taxis and buses.

Regulations on rental cars have also been established. In the case of rental cars, driving by a third party other than the "contract driver" who signed the lease contract is prohibited. Additionally, car rental businesses will face administrative sanctions such as business suspension if they rent cars to unlicensed or unqualified drivers. This is a measure to prevent rental car traffic accidents caused by unqualified drivers in advance.

Furthermore, the amendment allows corporate taxi companies to freely enter into contracts with multiple platform operators for each vehicle they own to prevent monopolies by platform franchise operators and promote competition. Currently, all vehicles of a corporate taxi company can only contract with one platform operator, but in the future, each vehicle owned by a corporate taxi company can contract with different platform operators.

This amendment will be enforced starting January next year after a six-month grace period. Eom Myungso, Director General of Comprehensive Transportation Policy at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "This amendment aims to secure the safety of taxi, bus, and rental car users and prevent traffic accidents," adding, "We will continue to improve the passenger transport service system with the highest priority on public safety and user convenience."