Kim Dong-yeon: "I will reduce Gyeonggi-do city bus fare by 200 won"

Kim Dong-yeon, Democratic Party of Korea candidate for Governor of Gyeonggi Province Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Kim Dong-yeon, the Democratic Party candidate for Governor of Gyeonggi Province, announced on the 25th that he will reduce the city bus fare in Gyeonggi Province from 1,450 won to 1,250 won, a decrease of 200 won.

At a press conference held at the Gyeonggi Provincial Council on the same day, Candidate Kim pledged, "Among the metropolitan areas, only Gyeonggi Province has high city bus fares, and it is necessary to alleviate the economic burden on Gyeonggi residents caused by rising living costs."

The city bus fare in Gyeonggi Province was raised by 200 won from 1,250 won to 1,450 won in September 2019.

Candidate Kim explained, "Through the introduction of a semi-public city bus system, we will lower the city bus fare to the level of Seoul. If we proceed with the 200 won reduction (from 1,450 won to 1,250 won), it is expected to require an annual budget of 100 billion won."

He promised to immediately restore bus operations, which have been reduced due to COVID-19, to full normalcy upon taking office, and to extend the operating hours of late-night buses, which currently run on 90 routes, as well as to discover new routes.

Additionally, he added that he will implement a "fixed-amount transfer discount system" between buses, subways, and taxis by utilizing taxis as quasi-public transportation.

He also proposed a pledge to introduce a large-scale "demand-responsive bus" system, where buses are automatically dispatched upon a certain number of passenger requests, to support transportation in vulnerable areas and new towns.