"Stories of Citizens Helping During the 'No Fare' Strike Gain Attention"

Stories of citizens helping others by providing free transportation during the morning commute amid the Seoul city bus strike have become a hot topic.

[Photo by 'X' capture]

On the 28th, a user A on the social networking service X posted, "The bus strike in our neighborhood, but the drivers are just giving free rides to everyone. I was touched," along with a photo. The photo shared shows a notice inside a bus stating, "Due to the Seoul city bus strike, no fares are being collected."

User A explained, "This is not a bus supported by the district or city," adding, "The bus company drivers participating in the strike are voluntarily operating the buses for free."

Another X user B also reported, "All Seoul buses are on strike today, but the drivers of bus number ○○○ are operating without collecting fares as usual." He added, "As someone who finds it difficult to use the subway, I am very grateful that the buses are running, but I am worried if the driver of the longest route bus is okay with this." The accompanying photo showed a notice that appeared to be handwritten by the bus driver on an A4 sheet saying, "No fares are collected."

Netizens who saw the news responded with comments such as, "They have a tremendous sense of duty to avoid causing inconvenience to citizens even during the strike," "I was moved from the morning," and "Thanks to them, I got to work safely."

There was also a story of a citizen who drove their own van to pick up people waiting at a bus stop and took them to a nearby subway station. User C, who posted the story, wrote, "An older man came to the bus stop driving a mini Bongo van and said, 'Anyone going to ○○ Station!' and gave rides to about eight people to the station," expressing gratitude for the volunteer work early in the morning.

Additionally, a student who took their first mock exam said, "Thank you so much to the driver of bus number ○○○○. Today was my first mock exam, and thanks to you, I arrived safely." The student added, "The driver didn’t charge fares out of consideration for the citizens. He also wrote that he plans to continue this during the bus strike," showing support for the bus driver.

Netizens who read these heartwarming stories left comments such as, "Really thankful to those who volunteered from the morning," and "I recharged my humanity."

Earlier, the Seoul City Bus Labor Union declared a full strike starting from the first bus at 4 a.m. on the 28th after negotiations with the employer, the Seoul City Bus Transportation Business Association, broke down. Later that day, around 3:20 p.m., both sides reached an agreement on wage negotiations, and normal operations resumed immediately after about 11 hours of strike.