Establishing Smart Tourism Transportation
with Introduction of Tourism Taxis and
Demand Responsive Transport Systems
Yeongdeok County in North Gyeongsang Province has been finally selected for the "2025 Tourism Transportation Promotion Region Public Contest Project," hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization, securing a total project budget of 800 million KRW, including 400 million KRW in national funding.
The Tourism Transportation Promotion Region Public Contest Project supports the introduction of tourism transportation systems tailored to the characteristics of regions with excellent tourism potential but poor public transportation accessibility. This year, only two locations nationwide were selected: Yeongdeok County and Sokcho City.
Due to Yeongdeok County's long north-south geographical layout, there has been a growing need to improve transportation convenience between major tourist sites and Blue Road points. By applying for this project, Yeongdeok County received high marks for its plans to promote tourism taxis, introduce DRT (Demand Responsive Transport), and operate tourism content, leading to its final selection.
Accordingly, Yeongdeok County plans to establish smart tourism transportation infrastructure, such as introducing tourism taxis and DRT for walking tourists, in connection with improved public transportation including the opening of the Donghae Jungbuseon Railway this year and the Pohang-Yeongdeok Expressway scheduled for completion at the end of the year.
Yeongdeok Station.
First, the tourism taxi service will support up to 50% of taxi fares for small groups of walking tourists using trains or buses. A total of five courses, including gourmet travel, historical exploration, and photo spots, will be operated for 3 to 5 hours each.
The DRT bus is a public transportation option that allows users to call a vehicle via a mobile app. By flexibly operating its routes, it enables tourists to travel to local attractions at desired times and locations, and is expected to improve transportation efficiency by eliminating unnecessary detours.
Yeongdeok County plans to operate the tourism taxi service starting in April, and aims to establish a smart tourism system in response to the opening of the Donghae Jungbuseon Railway by building a platform that integrates various functions such as DRT reservations and tourism information guidance by the end of the year.
County Governor Kim Kwangyeol stated, "This project marks the starting point for building tourism transportation infrastructure on our way to becoming a city of 15 million tourists, and we will do our utmost to promote tourism revitalization through this project."
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