Gyeonggi Province has prepared emergency transportation measures such as increasing the number of intercity, metropolitan, and city buses and extending the last bus times for village buses in anticipation of the nationwide railway labor union general strike.
Earlier, the railway union announced a general strike from 9 a.m. on the 14th to 9 a.m. on the 18th. Gyeonggi Province established an emergency transportation situation room starting from the day before the strike, the 13th, and plans to operate it 24 hours a day until the strike ends.
The Gyeonggi routes affected by the railway union strike include 11 lines such as the Gyeongbu Line. Gyeonggi Province expects these lines to be impacted by reduced operations and plans to actively utilize alternative transportation means such as intercity and city buses.
Gyeonggi Province will increase 98 buses on 46 routes across 5 regions by utilizing reserve vehicles held by intercity bus companies, and if additional needs arise, it will flexibly respond to demand by signing joint charter bus operation agreements.
Additionally, on-site monitoring will be conducted at major railway stations and congested bus areas, and to improve congestion during commuting hours, 59 metropolitan buses will be added with 80 additional trips, and 18 regular city buses will be added with 130 additional trips to focus on dispatching during peak hours.
Village buses on 787 routes with 2,795 vehicles will extend their last bus times by one hour, and taxi cooperatives and city/county offices will be requested to actively encourage taxi operations during the strike period.
Kim Sang-su, Director of the Transportation Bureau, stated, "We will do our best to support alternative transportation means to minimize inconvenience to residents during the railway strike."
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