Gwangju City Implements Comprehensive Measures for Citizen Life Stability Ahead of Lunar New Year

Gwangju City Hall

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City announced on the 12th that it will implement the ‘Comprehensive Measures for Citizens’ Life Stability for the Lunar New Year’ to ensure that citizens can spend a safe and comfortable Lunar New Year holiday.

The comprehensive measures will focus on 10 areas: support for marginalized groups, price stabilization, resolution of unpaid wages, traffic flow, convenience for ancestral grave visitors, safety management, emergency medical care, environmental maintenance, water supply, and establishment of public service discipline.

First, the city will support 90 welfare facilities with consolation funds ranging from 100,000 to 300,000 KRW and provide 100,000 KRW per household to low-income single-parent families so that vulnerable groups who are easily isolated during the holidays can spend a warm holiday.

For 9,826 children at risk of missing meals, lunch boxes and meal card vouchers for affiliated stores will be provided, and civil servants will carry out voluntary service activities for neighbors in need.

To stabilize prices directly related to citizens’ lives ahead of the Lunar New Year, a Price Countermeasure Situation Room and task force will be operated, and price management will be promoted through guidance on non-compliance with price labeling and unfair trade. The city also plans to revitalize traditional markets through campaigns encouraging shopping at traditional markets and purchasing Onnuri gift certificates.

For the convenience of returning holiday travelers and ancestral grave visitors during the Lunar New Year holiday, Gwangju General Bus Terminal, national and municipal cemeteries, and Yeongnak Park have been designated as special transport sections. Bus number 518 from the terminal to Yeongnak Park will be increased by 9 buses per day for a total of 28 trips. Yeongnak Park will be added as a stop on route 15, and route Yongjeon 86 will be extended to Yeongnak Park as its terminal.

Additionally, on the day before the holiday, the 23rd, one additional train departing from Songjeong Station in both directions will be operated after the last subway train. To ensure smooth traffic flow, national road detour signs will be installed at major highway interchanges (IC) expected to be congested, and real-time traffic information will be provided through traffic broadcasts and electronic display boards.

To enhance convenience for ancestral grave visitors, Yeongnak Park’s operating hours will be extended by 3 hours from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Temporary incense offering sites (44 locations) and temporary parking lots (730 spaces) will be additionally secured, and guides will be assigned for worshippers and the elderly. During the holiday period, about 80 people including exemplary drivers, police officers, and civil servants will assist with traffic flow around the cemetery.

For disaster and safety management during the holiday, a 24-hour disaster situation management system will be maintained using a disaster situation propagation system for continuous monitoring. Safety inspections of multi-use facilities, special fire investigations, and phased snow removal measures in preparation for heavy snowfall will be implemented.

In addition, to avoid inconvenience in medical treatment during the Lunar New Year holiday, 25 emergency medical institutions including Chonnam National University Hospital and Chosun University Hospital will be designated and operated. Health centers will operate normally on the holiday, and on-duty medical institutions and pharmacies will be designated and operated.

To prepare for outbreaks of waterborne infectious diseases, MERS, and other group infectious diseases, response systems will be established with city and district offices and government agencies. Food poisoning and other food accidents will be prevented through inspections of Lunar New Year seasonal foods.

To ensure stable water supply during the holiday, a comprehensive water supply situation room and mobile response team will be operated, and 15 locations expected to have poor water discharge such as high-altitude areas will be pre-inspected. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sales outlets will also be designated and operated by region to prevent inconvenience to citizens.

A concentrated cleaning period before and after the holiday will be set, and city and district offices will conduct large-scale cleaning for the Lunar New Year. To ensure citizens do not experience inconvenience in waste disposal, 1,777 sanitation workers and 50 mobile response teams will operate during the holiday. Illegal roadside waste and advertisements will also be cleaned up for the holiday.

To allow construction workers to spend the holiday without livelihood worries, a wage arrears reporting center will be operated on the city website and in the Construction Administration Division. Prevention of wage arrears will be promoted through confirmation of subcontractor payment by prime contractors and inspections of large construction sites, and early payment of public construction project funds will be pursued.

Furthermore, to respond to various emergency accidents during the holiday, a duty system for public officials will be established, and public service discipline will be reinforced through special inspection activities.

Park Hyang, Director of the City Autonomous Administration Bureau, said, “We will thoroughly prepare in each field so that returning visitors and citizens visiting Gwangju during the Lunar New Year holiday can spend a safe and comfortable holiday without accidents.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.