Gyeonggi-do Creates 'Simple Rest Areas' for Taxi Drivers

Gyeonggi Province is creating 'simple taxi rest areas' using idle spaces at LPG charging stations to improve the working environment for taxi drivers this year. To this end, Gyeonggi Province began a demand survey for the project targeting 31 cities and counties from the 8th of this month.

The simple taxi rest area is a resting space remodeled from the idle space on the first floor of an LPG charging station, equipped with heating and cooling facilities, chairs, TVs, and more. It will be open 24 hours and designed so that all taxi drivers, not only those using LPG taxis, can easily use the rest area before and after refueling.

Gyeonggi Provincial Government

After selecting the target project sites through the demand survey of cities and counties, Gyeonggi Province will support up to 15 million KRW per location from the provincial budget. In addition to the new project of 'simple taxi rest areas,' Gyeonggi Province is also conducting a 'standalone building-type rest area' project in the demand survey. The standalone building-type rest area involves installing lounges and fitness rooms in dedicated rest area buildings, with up to 500 million KRW (50% of construction costs) supported per site from the provincial budget.

Kim Sang-su, Director of the Transportation Bureau of Gyeonggi Province, said, "Through the support project for creating taxi rest areas, including simple rest areas, we will create an environment where taxi drivers in Gyeonggi Province can work more comfortably," adding, "We expect this project to greatly contribute to improving the job satisfaction of taxi drivers."

Meanwhile, as of January this year, there are 36,624 taxis in Gyeonggi Province, of which 31,883 vehicles, accounting for 87% of the total, use LPG as fuel. Currently, welfare facilities for taxi drivers in the province include a total of 35 facilities either operating or under construction: 3 welfare centers (in Yangju, Yongin, and Bucheon under construction), 22 rest areas, and 10 city/county-operated rest areas.